Despite the importance of seed banks, knowledge about their formation and the extent to which they can recover after severe perturbation remains scarce. Olano et al. experimentally remove the seed bank from plots in an undisturbed semi-arid Mediterranean community and monitor its recovery over 3 years. They find that seed rain at small scales and secondary [...]
Much of plant biomass is in roots but we know much less about root properties that affect decomposition rates than we do about above-ground tissues. Aulen and Shipley measure decomposition rates of 17 species of trees and herbs using intact soil cores in the field and relate the differences to root chemical and morphological properties. [...]
Some otherwise promising selections of Actinidia chinensis (kiwifruit) have fruit that are too small for successful commercialization. Wu et al. induce chromosome doubling using colchicine and measure subsequent fruit weight, size and crop load in the third year after planting and over 3 consecutive years. They find that for four female diploid genotypes the fruit of [...]
It has generally been considered that the flowers of Scrophularia are mainly pollinated by wasps. Ortega-Olivencia et al. study the four species with the largest and most striking flowers in Europe and Macaronesia (S. sambucifolia, S. grandiflora, S. trifoliata and S. calliantha) and demonstrate the existence of a mixed pollination system between Hymenoptera and passerine [...]
A strict control of nitrate concentration in hydroponics during long-term experiments requires real-time analyses that cannot be performed manually. Adamowicz et al. describe a novel automatic set-up that measures and regulates nitrate concentration, pH and solution volume, allowing the calculation of nitrate uptake rates. The system is shown to be reliable at high temporal resolution (minutes [...]
The selection of floral and reproductive traits is influenced by the plant’s abiotic environment, florivores and pollinators. Leroy et al. show that mutualistic associations with ants can result in an enhanced reproductive allocation for the tank‐bromeliad Aechmea mertensii. They find that association with Camponotus femoratus results in more and larger inflorescences, more flowers and fruits, and [...]
Stomatal aperture is regulated by the stress-induced phyto-hormone abscisic acid (ABA), and by CO2 and Ca2+ concentrations. Hubbard et al. review the topic and propose models to explain the specificity of signalling for the common intermediate, intracellular Ca2+. These models are put in the context of recent research identifying ABA receptors. New genetic Ca2+-dependent protein kinase [...]
Carnivory offers plants special advantages in habitats where nutrient supply is scarce, but counterbalancing costs are the investments in the synthesis and maintenance of trapping organs and hydrolysing enzymes. Król et al. review carnivory in plants, focussing in particular on physiological processes associated with active trapping and digestion of prey. They consider that carnivorous plants can [...]
Purple acid phosphatases (PAPs) are members of the metallo-phosphoesterase family and have been known to play important roles in P acquisition and recycling in plants. Li et al. identify 35 PAP genes from genomes of soybean, Glycine max, and use quantitative real-time PCR to analyse the expression patterns in response to P deficiency and symbiosis. They [...]
Jatropha curcas is a drought-resistant tree whose seeds are a good source of oil that can be used for producing biodiesel. Windauer et al. examine germination at different temperatures and water potentials and find that there is an extremely narrow thermal range within which dormancy problems are not encountered and that the seeds have a high [...]