“One day, our villages will be partly lit thanks to this process”: when night falls, these plants light up

Will the future of public lighting be written with luminescent plants? Mignières (Eure-et-Loir) is launching an experiment in partnership with Aglaé to answer this question. The Parisian plant design agency, based in Chartres (Eure-et-Loir) in 2022, offers a unique treatment of flowers and plants thanks to a serum, “composed of a luminescent molecule and other adjuvants, which they absorb through their roots,” explains Adam Thomas, project engineer in plant innovation at Aglaé. As soon as night falls, using black lights placed nearby, this serum reveals all the veins of the plant. “Every plant is different. We have to adapt our process to each variety,” adds the engineer.

This Tuesday, December 17 afternoon, four municipal employees and three technicians from Aglaé worked to decorate the area around the central alley of Place des Granges, which leads to the town hall, with plants, i.e. 37 linear meters. “We chose species that resist the cold. Particularly, one of our flagship plants, the fern, because it has very luminescent and rather graphic foliage,” notes the engineer.

Alongside the fern, the hellebore, a flower also known as the Christmas rose, small pines, and muehlenbeckias also frame the paved path. Depending on the species, the luminescence tends towards green or yellow.

Up to three months of luminescence

After carrying out its first experiments with cut plants, which are ephemeral in nature, Aglaé is developing its lighting technology on annual or perennial flowers. It now provides up to three months of luminescence. An innovation that appealed to the town of Mignières. At the gates of Chartres, the village supports the growth of the start-up. “The performance of this company in the luminescence of plants makes us believe that one day our villages will be partly lit thanks to this process. This experimental phase allows Aglaé to progress. It also brings attractiveness to the town and an additional charm to the magic of Christmas,” assures the mayor, Didier Garnier.