Researchers have found that nitrogen-fixing legume trees can support themselves and surrounding trees not only with increased access to nitrogen but with other key nutrients through enhanced mineral weathering.
Spectacular fossil plants preserved within a volcanic ash fall in China have shed light on an evolutionary race 300 million years ago, which was eventually won by the seed-bearing plants that dominate so much of the Earth today.
Researchers have revealed the response mechanism of rhizosphere microorganisms of deep-rooted leguminous plant to water and nitrogen changes in desert ecosystem.
An impressive body of evidence published this week reveals the answer to a mystery that has puzzled plant scientists for more than 30 years: the role of the molecule suberin in the leaves of some of our most productive crops. This discovery could be the key to engineering better crops and ensuring future food security.
Plants grow in two directions: the shoots of plants grow toward the light to make the best use of it, and the roots grow toward the center of the earth into the soil. A team has now been able to describe in detail how the molecular mechanisms work that control these processes.
Researchers find that plant root tips are constrained to a dome shape, similar to that of an arched bridge, because of one-directional and localized tissue growth.
Like other plants, mistletoe is capable of using sunlight to create its own food, a process called photosynthesis. However, it prefers to siphon water and nutrients from other trees and shrubs, using “false roots” to invade its hosts.
The species diversity and relationships of lichens in the genus Leptogium, which are often very difficult to identify to species, were assessed on the basis of DNA analyses using a large dataset collected during almost 10 years from East Africa.
Optogenetics can be used to activate and study cells in a targeted manner using light. Scientists have now succeeded in transferring this technique to plants.
How “elicitors” can initiate defense responses in plants against herbivores, and can potentially lead to development of pesticide-free agriculture.
