Invasive alien species are considered to be a major threat to natural ecosystems, biodiversity, agro-ecosystems and urban areas, and the numerous international agreements that recognise their negative effects reflect worldwide concerns.
The 11th Congress of International Plant Molecular Biology took place at Iguazú Falls, located at the Argentine-Brazilian border. Our guest blogger Michelle Cotta used the opportunity to talk to a few of the leading scientists there. Luis Herrera Estrella from Physiology and Metabolic Engineering of Plants, Mexico, lectured about ‘Two examples of using genomics to […]
The 11th Congress of International Plant Molecular Biology took place at Iguazú Falls, located at the Argentine-Brazilian border. This was an outstanding event, co-organized by the two Latin American countries, and held at an inspiring location for celebration of plant science. During the conference, the challenges that must be overcome during the next years relating […]
The inset cover image shows the fleshy structures formed by the outermost seed integument (sarcotesta) of the gymnosperm Ginkgo biloba, which are attractive to animals and thus act like angiosperm fruits from a functional point of view. B-sister genes appear to have a role in the formation of these structures where they have an ovular […]
The July insert cover image shows the berry section of kiwifruit, Actinidia deliciosa; the blue spots are stained vascular bundles. In common with many other fruits, inward xylem flow decreases as the fruit matures and this can be associated with physiological disorders related to mineral content and shrivelling of fruit. Decreased xylem flow can be […]
I grew up in Michigan, where both Norway and sugar maples are commonly found in parks and backyards. In the sixth grade, we had a unit on tree identification and one of the hardest questions was: Norway or sugar maple? It’s a question that still stumps me if I’m caught without a guidebook or smartphone. […]
For anyone intrigued by this brief article recently in Science, the full paper can be found free online at our website.
This month the inset cover image shows a detail of the stigma of a flower of apple, Malus × domestica. The acquisition of stigmatic receptivity is concomitant with secretion of arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs, strained green) into the intercellular spaces between cell walls (blue).
Carbon allocation, the process by which plants invest carbon into stored reserves and structures such as new leaves, stem tissue and roots, has implications for topics as varied as drought tolerance, carbon sequestration and crop yield. An upcoming special issue of Tree Physiology addresses the issue of carbon allocation in a series of articles ranging […]
Palms may be the most useful group of plants in tropical American forests and in this project we study the effect of extraction and trade of palms on forests in the western Amazon, Andes, and Pacific lowlands of South America. In 2008 the European Community’s 7th Framework programme signed a contract with six European and […]
“Forestry… may be called the younger sister and the servant of Agriculture. Each of these arts is essential to the welfare of nations, and no people can be said to be wise, politic, or economic which does not pay attention to the advancement of both” (Nisbet 1905) Oxford is nothing if not wise, politic and […]
Christmas is looming for many of us and with it the challenge of buying the perfect gift for friends and family. Choosing something for young people (especially teenagers) is particularly difficult since their quixotic sensibilities can make choosing just the right thing something of a shot in the dark. Although a printed book might seem […]
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