Transient Currents in Schefflera Stems

The long-term transient and steady-state currents produced in Schefflera stems by polarizing voltage steps of various amplitudes, and the subsequent depolarization currents, are investigated. Concurrent measurement of the voltage drops in the vicinity of the positive and negative electrodes permits the elimination of the electrode impedances. The conductance of the stem itself is obtained as a function of time for both polarization and depolarization. As the amplitude of the voltage step increases, the steady-state current becomes relatively more important and appears at earlier times. The results appear similar to those obtained for bone and organic polymers. Use of a hydroponic growth system leads to reproducibility for all results except the conductances. Inconsistency in these values may be due to a combination of space charge generation and error in the determination of the stem voltage.