Wild germplasm can potentially be used to improve the salt tolerance of crops by the identification of useful genes and incorporation of these into salinity-sensitive cultivars.

Thinning snow pack cover could alter how snow molds interact with plants over the winter.

Across the plant kingdom, there is an extraordinary diversity of flower forms, many of which are related to variation in the morphology and arrangement of reproductive organs. To prevent self-pollination, plants have evolved floral forms where sexual organs are separated spatially (herkogamy) or temporarily (dichogamy) within a single hermaphrodite flower. Both mechanisms are widespread among […]

Despite increasing efforts towards habitat and species protection in Europe since the 1990s, when the Fauna-Flora-Habitat directive was adopted, the proportion of threatened plant species has steadily increased. One strategy to combat this, according to the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, is to conserve threatened plant species in ex situ collections such as seed gene banks. […]

Many rare or narrowly distributed species show low levels of genetic diversity, whilst species with larger geographic ranges show increased diversity. Species that inhabit the border of the distribution of their respective genera usually have smaller and more fragmented populations and can have fixed locally adapted alleles. Different genetic patterns have been demonstrated for these […]

Boron and phosphorus are soil nutrients essential for plant growth, metabolism and development. Boron deficiency is a major factor limiting the growth of at least 132 crops in over 80 countries. Symptoms of boron deficiency are often most visible in rapidly growing tissues and can lead to a reduction in growth rate. However, too much […]

As the single opportunity for plants to move, seed dispersal has an important impact on plant fitness, species distributions and patterns of biodiversity. However, models that predict extinction risk of species, range shifts, and biodiversity tend to rely on average dispersal distances. Yet we know that seed dispersal is highly variable even within a single […]

Global climate change is threatening natural ecosystems worldwide. Mountain ecosystems are particularly vulnerable because range expansion or shifts are often not a viable strategy for species to adapt to the changing environment. Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of any genotype to produce a variety of phenotypes under different environmental conditions, is therefore critical in determining the […]

Ramírez and Hokche evaluated the breeding system, sexual system, dichogamy and herkogamy of herbaceous-shrubby communities from the Gran Sabana Plateau, Venezuela

Poulain et al. present a dataset describing six traits for polysaccharides extracted from the outer mucilage for 306 natural Arabidopsis thaliana accessions.

Root interactions among plants play an important role in promoting nutrient uptake, enhancing the performance of neighbouring individuals and thus plant fitness in natural communities and agroecological systems. Plants can influence the growth of their interspecific neighbours by altering root morphological (root length and biomass) and physiological traits (exudation of organic and inorganic compounds). Intercropping […]

Heterostyly, a term referred to plant species comprising either two (distyly) or three (tristyly) self-incompatible floral morphs that differ reciprocally in the positions of stigmas and anthers (i.e. reciprocal herkogamy), is considered as one of the most effective mechanisms to avoid selfing and promote outcrossing. This complex floral syndrome, which occurs in at least 28 […]