In experiments conducted in Biosphere 2, invasive buffelgrass weathers higher temperatures and drought conditions better than its native brethren.
plants
Plant Root Exudates Mediate Soil Nutrient Transport
Plant roots mediate solute transport through the soil immediately surrounding them by introducing polymers and other binding compounds that disrupt water transport pathways between soil pore spaces.
Thirsty Plants Pull Water from Bedrock
Shrubs and trees across the United States routinely sip water stored in bedrock, a discovery that has implications for the terrestrial water cycle.
Famine Weed Becomes More Toxic, Invasive in Carbon-Rich Atmosphere
A noxious weed’s success in Australia could indicate that some plants are benefitting from our carbon-rich atmosphere, becoming more invasive, competitive, and toxic.
Permanence of Nature-Based Climate Solutions at Risk
Conserving native ecosystems helps sequester carbon and mitigate climate change, but new statistical modeling questions the permanence of California’s carbon-rich forests with climate change.
Global Warming Could Rob Liquors of Their Flavor
A new study examines the impact of glacial extinction on biodiversity in alpine regions.
Terrestrial Plants Flourished After the Cretaceous–Paleogene Extinction
Compounds in ancient plant leaves tell the story of how an extinction event shaped our planet’s ecosystems.
Drones Help Bridge the Gaps in Assessing Global Change
New instruments in the research tool kit bolster scientific understanding of the ecology of a greening Arctic.
Ideal Temperatures for Carbon Uptake by Subtropical Plants
Air temperatures in coastal ecosystems of Australia routinely exceed the optimum range for photosynthesis, hindering plants’ ability to take up atmospheric carbon.
Sudden Oak Death Taking a Toll on U.S. West Coast
Researchers have been modeling effects of the plant pathogen Phytophthora ramorum on coastal forests in California and Oregon since it arrived on the West Coast 3 decades ago.