Sarah Covshoff

50 posts

Sarah is a plant molecular biologist passionate about communicating the science of the natural world to lay people and experts alike. She previously worked as a postdoctoral fellow on C4 photosynthesis and now focuses on science communication.

A young lady holds a wreath, while and elderly priest sprinkles water over it in the summer sunset. Other villagers can be se

Plants & People

When Storms Strike, Dutch Villagers Raise a Shield of Flowers

Some southern villages in the Netherlands continue the ancient practice of protecting their homes with St. John’s bouquets and wreaths. An ethnobotanical survey was recently conducted to understand the species composition and function of these blessed charms.

Sarah Covshoff

07 Oct 2025

A thicket of Himalayan balsam, its cheery pink flowers hiding its deadly effects.

Ecosystems

Drones can be used to monitor invasive weeds in hard to access habitats

Drones, equipped with automated detection systems, can efficiently survey difficult habitats, enabling targeted management of noxious weeds.

Sarah Covshoff

03 Oct 2025

A pink flower of Gossypium australe, with a deeper purple towards the centre.

Growth & Development

Wild cotton species can handle the heat

Four wild Australian cotton species thrive in high heat, unlike commercial cotton. These wild species could be used to breed heat tolerance into commercial cotton.

Sarah Covshoff

02 Oct 2025

Macro photograph of a single Dactylorhiza fuchsii (Common Spotted Orchid) flower in sharp focus. The flower has delicate pale

Close Encounters

Nature vs nurture: Untangling why mycorrhizal fungal diversity differs across orchid species

Mycorrhizal communities are shaped by orchid trophic mode and biogeography but not orchid phylogeny.

Sarah Covshoff

30 Sep 2025

Leptocarpus denmarkicus against the background of a flat row of fingers.

Growth & Development

Spikelet morphology in Restionaceae is more diverse than previously thought

Scientists have studied the morphology of male and female Leptocarpus denmarkicus spikelets, offering new insights into the evolutionary plasticity of flower development and seed dispersal within the Poales.

Sarah Covshoff

18 Sep 2025

Viola tricolor ssp. macedonica shading from purple to white as you look down the flower.

Cells, Genes & Molecules

Thriving in Allchar: Arsenic and Thallium Tolerance in Viola Species

Viola metallophytes have evolved the rare capacity to tolerate toxic metals, allowing them to thrive in the harsh soils of Allchar, North Macedonia. Scientists now know that two closely related Viola species have evolved different tolerance mechanisms – opening up an interesting case of convergent e

Sarah Covshoff

11 Sep 2025

The yellow flowers of Rhianthus minor, Yellow Rattle, on a stem, with a hand holding them for scale. They're smaller than a t

Cells, Genes & Molecules

Parasitic plants help build lignin deposits in host tissues

Their unknown function in developing hausteria remains to be uncovered.

Sarah Covshoff

07 Sep 2025

Cells, Genes & Molecules

Domestication causes some crops to lose protective immunity genes

Losing immunity receptor genes makes these crops more susceptible to disease, but wild relatives can be used to better understand these genes and help breed hardier crops.

Sarah Covshoff

02 Sep 2025

A pine cone and a tiny seedling on otherwise barren ash.

Growth & Development

Seedling emergence is catastrophically affected by depth of volcanic ash

5 cm of volcanic ash leads to the loss of seedling emergence on the volcanic island of La Palma in the Canary Islands, likely affecting succession for decades after a recent eruption.

Sarah Covshoff

29 Aug 2025

Two large purple flowers with funnel-shaped petals and bright white centers dominate the foreground, each displaying five pro

Growth & Development

Scientists Bust the Myth of the Saltwater-Sipping Desert Shrub

The dream of crops that could drink seawater has taken a hit as botanists prove that Nolana mollis, a desert survivor long believed to hydrate itself from atmospheric brine, actually relies on conventional deep-root water uptake to survive Chile’s bone-dry Atacama Desert.

Sarah Covshoff

29 May 2025