Early life-history stages of cacti can benefit from the facilitative effects of nurse plants that reduce solar radiation and water stress. Miranda-Jácome et al. conduct a reciprocal transplant experiment, coupled with the artificial manipulation of sun/shade conditions, to test for the effects of local adaptation on germination, seedling survival and growth of the columnar cactus Pilosocereus [...]

Responses of high-mountain plant species to global change are highly influenced by the genetic background of the species, including genetic diversity or gene flow between populations. García-Fernández et al. study the genetic patterns of Silene ciliata (Caryophyllaceae), a high-mountain cushion plant that shows local adaptation to altitude, by examining populations along two altitudinal gradients on separate [...]

Early life history stages are among the most critical phases in the life cycle of plants. De Frenne et al. assess the response of plant regeneration from seed of two forest understorey plants (Anemone nemorosa and Milium effusum) to variations in temperature along a latitudinal gradient. They find decreasing seedling emergence and fitness towards the northern [...]

Population differentiation in a variable environment is related to the selection pressures that plants experience. Ward et al. compare differences in growth- and defence-related traits in two isolated populations of Acacia raddiana trees from sites at either end of an extreme environmental gradient in the Negev desert. They find no evidence of trade-offs between physical and [...]

Mertensia fusiformis (Boraginaceae) is a spring-flowering perennial showing pronounced intraspecific variation in style length and stigma–anther separation. Forrest et al. show that population-level variation in flowering time, driven by patchiness in timing of snowmelt, causes different populations to experience different temperature regimes during flowering and functionally distinct suites of pollinators. The interaction between plant and [...]