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Image: Mosses and other plant species, grow together next to a stream. Credit: geonjin kim / Pixabay

News Plant Science

Research sheds surprising new light on evolution of plant kingdom

A new study has uncovered intriguing insights into the evolution of plant biology, effectively rewriting the history of how they evolved over the past billion years.

Isabel26/09/2023

Image: bamboo flowering. Credit: Toshihiro Yamada, Hiroshima University)

Botany News

Flowering for naught: 120 years with nothing to show

A long-lived monocarpic species of bamboo, Phyllostachys nigra var. henonis, only flowers once every 120 years before it dies. The upcoming flowering event for this species does not bode well for its continued long-term survival, as most flowers are not producing…

Isabel25/09/2023

Rafflesia banaoana. Credit: Chris Thorogood

Botany News Plant Science

Researchers issue urgent call to save the world’s largest flower -Rafflesia – from extinction

An international group of scientists has issued an urgent call for coordinated action to save the iconic genus Rafflesia, which contains the world’s largest flowers. This follows a new study which found that most of the 42 species are severely…

Isabel22/09/2023

Microscope image of one of the closest algal relatives of land plants, a single-celled alga called Mesotaenium endlicherianum (20 micrometres corresponds to 0.02 millimetres). Credit: Tatyana Darienko

News Plant Science

Algae provide clues about 600 million years of plant evolution

The Earth's surface is covered by plants. They make up the majority of biomass on land and exhibit a wide range of diversity, from mosses to trees. This astounding biodiversity came into existence due to a fateful evolutionary event that…

Isabel21/09/2023

Examples of species that may be ambophilous and that require field experiments to resolve the predominant pollen vector in their natural habitat. (A) The pendulous inflorescences (spikes) of Tetracentron sinense (Trochodendraceae) suggest wind pollination, but the stamens' filaments produce nectar drops (arrow in the insert panel in A). (B) Honeybee collecting nectar and the sticky pollen from the catkins of Salix matsudana (Salicaceae). The inset shows an orange-yellow nectary (arrow) attached to the ovary. (C) A lavatory fly feeding on the liquid offered by the male flowers of Castanea mollissima (Fagaceae). (D) A mosquito collecting nectar from a green female flower of Helwingia japonica (Helwingiaceae); its head carries white pollen from a previously visited male plant. (E) An inflorescence of the dioecious Sargentodoxa cuneata (Lardizabalaceae); the inset shows the yellow greenish petals (white arrow). (F) Female flowers of the gynodioecious Thalictrum smithii (Ranunculaceae) without sepals, typical of wind pollination. (G) A bumblebee collecting pollen from a hermaphroditic flower of Thalictrum delavayi. (H) A halictid bee collecting pollen from white-flowered Juncus allioides (Juncaceae); the inset shows pollen tetrads (arrow) germinating on a stigma. (I) Sticky pollen grains presented on the dehisced anthers of Paris polyphylla (Melanthiaceae). Credit: Shuang-Quan Huang

Botany News Plant Science

90% of flowering plant species found to rely on animal pollinators

Pollen of flowering plants can be dispersed by animals, wind or even by water. In assessing pollination modes, a fundamental question is how many flowering plants are pollinated by animals. Although the question has been raised previously, an accurate estimation…

Isabel20/09/2023

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Research sheds surprising new light on evolution of plant kingdom

Flowering for naught: 120 years with nothing to show

Researchers issue urgent call to save the world’s largest flower -Rafflesia – from extinction

Algae provide clues about 600 million years of plant evolution

90% of flowering plant species found to rely on animal pollinators

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