Abstract: In this paper, light saturation point and light compensation point, p igment content in leaf, the
response of leaf color to environmental light intensity on 14 kinds of golden-leaf p lantswere measured. The re
sults showed that the chlorophyll content and ratio of Chl. /Car. of golden-leaf plants increased with the de
scending leaf position and the leaf color ofmost golden2leaf p lantswas affected by environmental light intensi
ty. The golden leave turned green and the content of chlorophyll increased with the decrease of light intensity.
According to the sensitivity of leaf color to light intensity, these p lants were divided into three types, namely
light insensitivity, light sensitivity and highly light sensitivity. The light insensitivity type includes Ipom oea
batatas‘Aurea’and Epiprem num au reum. The light sensitivity type includes Celtis ju lianae‘Aurea’, Gledit
sia triacanthos‘Sunburst’, Sophora japonica‘Aurea’, Physocarpus opulifolius‘Aurea’, Cornus alba‘Au
rea’, L igustrum lucidum ‘Aurea’, Spiraea bum alda‘Goldmound’, B erberis thunbergii‘Aurea’, and the
highly light sensitivity type includes Sam bucus g lauca ‘Aurea ’, Caryopteris ×Clandonensis ‘Worcester
Gold’, Forsyth ia koreana‘Suwon Gold’.

Key words: Golden-leaf plant, Pigment content, Leaf position, Light intensity, Light sensitivity