Different plants need different amount of sunlight. Are there different qualities of sunlight for plant growth?
For example, does a plant that gets sunlight from noon-3 get better quality light than the same plant that gets sunlight from 4-7?
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Sure there can be different qualities! Besides the amount of light, when we talk about quality of light, we are usually talking about where the light is coming from and what color it is. Its not really about good or bad light, but about whether a plant is getting the kind of light it evolved to live in.
Generally, light can come from a point source, or a diffuse source. The sun, or a lightbulb, would be a point source. All light from one spot. Plants adapted for direct sunlight can deal with getting too much light without overheating and can deal with lots of red and infrared light.
Plants sold as “full shade” evolved to get less light and from diffuse sources like an open blue sky or the underside of lots of other green leaves.
And you’re right that sunlight changes through the day. Air steals blue light away from the suns rays and the stuff that’s left is a little redder. The more high in the sky, the less air the light goes through, the bluer the light.
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