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The Broccoli Tree
Via BoingBoing came this video on the Broccoli Tree by the vlogbrothers You can visit the instagram stream at thebroccolitree. As art, it’s fascinating as
featured
Anna Atkins Photographic Pioneer
For International Women’s Day 2018, we celebrate the life and work of Anna Atkins, a pioneer of photography. She pushed the technology of her day
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Can plants escape from an arms race?
It’s easy to see how herbivory could lead to defences in plants, but what happens when the attackers start using those expensive defences for their own benefit?
Ecosystems
Rock could aid humanity
This excellent news is no surprise to followers of Bill and Ted.
Plants & People
Can Trees Track the Air that You Breathe?
A new paper in PLOS One says trees outside your house can act as sentinels tracking the concentrations of potentially hazardous chemicals in your home’s air.
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The Return of the Rainbow Rose
One of our most popular posts is Roses are red – but they don’t need to be, if you know how to use food dyes and
Growth & Development
The benefits of sleeping in
The early bird catches the worm, but does the frost catch the early plant? A new article in AmJBot says there are advantages for a plant to germinate late.
Taxonomy & Evolution
Unexpected flowers in the Jurassic
Did flowering plants appear earlier than the fossil record indicates? Two papers independently conclude they did – and suggest what fossil evidence we should look for.
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Poképlants
It’s Friday afternoon, so I’m relaxing with a video, in this case the latest from Brilliant Botany, a follow up to the earlier video, The Plants of Pokémon Go.
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What is it that plant pathogens are attacking?
It might seem obvious that plant pathogens attack plants, but a new paper in Molecular Plant Pathology argues that we should be looking at a wider battle in the soil.
Ecosystems
Fort McMurray researchers find forests highlight the high fire risk areas
The larger the tree, the drier the peat and so the greater the fire risk.
Growth & Development
Pollution isn’t always good for trees
You might be surprised that it has any positive effects, but anthropogenic Nitrogen has been boosting the nutrients for sugar maples in Michigan. But these benefits are likely to be lost in the future due to rising CO2 concentrations.