annals-of-botany
How arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi talk to plants before colonisation
Plant roots do not sit alone in the soil. In the earth you will also find various microbes. Lurking in the dirt is Rhizophagus irregularis, an
annals-of-botany
Species interactions change the response of saltmarsh plants to flooding
A coastal plant’s ability to cope with temporary flooding isn’t just due to its own traits. Neighbours can make a flood more, or less, tolerable.
annals-of-botany
Plant invasion success varies with latitude
It was thought that herbivory was more likely to aid plant invasions closer to the equator. New research shows that reality is a bit more complicated.
annals-of-botany
Islands in the desert and a refuge against a changing climate
If you’re looking for biodiversity, one good place to start is an unexpectedly harsh environment.
annals-of-botany
Taking a close look at the mystery of the disappearing petals
How do flowers develop? This is a puzzle tackled by Wei Lai and Louis Ronse de Craene in their paper What is the nature of petals
annals-of-botany
How Gleditsia triacanthos invades across biomes
A plant can invade territory when it’s adapted to it, but how can a plant be adapted to multiple biomes. A new paper examines how Honey Locust seedlings use plasticity to tackle new locations.
annals-of-botany
How does mixed mating persist, when self-pollination ensures a plant won’t reproduce?
Being a seed from self-pollination guarantees failure in Eucalyptus regnans. Yet despite this, new research shows a mixed-mating system. including selfing, is evolutionarily stable.
Reviews
Between scientists and journalists, the PIO
Handbook for Science Public Information Officers by W. Matthew Shipman, 2015. The University of Chicago Press. This book had been on my ‘to-read’ list for
annals-of-botany
Now rice has more options to cope with flooding.
When waters rise, should a rice plant shut down and conserve energy till it can breathe again – or should it grow faster to get above the water? New research has produced rice that can do both.
annals-of-botany
When a plant loses photosynthesis, what else does it lose?
One of the common features of plants they make their own food. But what happens inside a plant when they stop making their food and eat something else?
annals-of-botany
How to break down cell walls in sugarcane
One way of improving the usefulness of a plant crop might come not from studying where the plant cells grow, but where they die.
annals-of-botany
The hidden diversity of Pitcairnia lanuginosa
Pitcairnia lanuginosa might look similar wherever you find it in South America, but hidden inside are some differences that can tell a tale about its past.