The effect of light on the dwarfing allele, le, in Pisum sativum L. was tested as the growth response to gibberellins prior to or beyond the presumed block in the gibberellin biosynthetic pathway. The response to the substrate (GA20), the product (GA1), and a nonendogenous early precursor (steviol) was compared in plants bearing the normal Le and the deficient lele genotypes in plants made low in gibberellin content genetically (nana lines) or by paclobutrazol treatment to tall (cv Alaska) and dwarf (cv Progress) peas. Both genotypes responded to GA1 under red irradiation and in darkness. The lele plants grew in response to GA20 and steviol in darkness but showed a much smaller response when red irradiated. The Le plants responded to GA20 and steviol in both light and darkness. The red effects on lele plants were largely reversible by far-red irradiation. It is concluded that the deficiency in 3j@-hydroxylation of GA20 to GA1 in genotype lele is due to a Pfr-induced blockage in the expression of that activity.Light grown dwarf peas lack the ability to convert GA202 to GA1 (6, 7), yet GA1 and GA8 were recently identified in extracts ofetiolated dwarf pea shoots (3). We will present evidence which suggests that etiolated dwarf pea plants lose the ability to convert GA20 to GA, upon formation of Pfr as a consequence ofexposure to R. Attempts by earlier workers to measure light-induced changes in GA metabolism or GA levels in tall and dwarf peas led to inconsistent results (reviewed in Smith [20]). Some experiments indicated phytochrome-mediated changes in GA metabolism, while other reports suggested an effect of light on "sensitivity" to endogenous GAs.Some genes which help determine plant stature in Pisum have recently been characterized (6,7,13,14,17). At least five loci have been shown to influence stem elongation, including the Na and Le loci, which affect GA metabolism. The recessive na allele apparently blocks an early step in GA biosynthesis, since nana plants do not contain detectable levels of GAs (13). The early C-13 hydroxylation pathway of GA biosynthesis predominates in peas (3,8