Plants
- Plants
Scientists Say: Marcescence
Autumn turns to winter, yet some trees' dead leaves keep hanging on.
- Animals
Pikmin’s plant-animal mashups don’t exist — but sun-powered animals do
Corals team up with photosynthetic zooxanthellae. Some sea slugs steal chloroplasts. How might animals and plants team up in Nintendo’s Pikmin games?
- Animals
Scientists Say: Camouflage
Plants and animals alike hide in plain sight using this sneaky strategy.
- Tech
Bits of trees can make and store energy for us to use
This cellulose and lignin, two major building blocks of trees, could lead to greener electronics.
- Tech
Bionic plants and electric algae may usher in a greener future
Some can aid the climate by removing pollutants. Others would just avoid dirtying the environment in the first place.
- Climate
Some tree leaves are finding it too hot for photosynthesis
Earth’s ongoing fever threatens to push entire forests toward this heat limit — and possible death.
- Plants
Young corn leaves can ‘smell’ danger
As they mature, these leaves lose their ability to detect threatening scents.
- Plants
Scientists Say: Fertilize
This word describes both a stage of sexual reproduction and the agricultural practice of adding nutrients to soil.
- Chemistry
Scientists Say: Lignin
This rigid polymer transports water and gives trees their strength.
- Agriculture
Crops are being engineered to thrive in our changing climate
Plants are already the best carbon catchers on Earth. New research could make them even better.
- Plants
A single particle of light can kick off photosynthesis
In a new experiment with bacteria, a lone photon sparked the process of turning light to chemical energy.
- Plants
Could a plant ever eat a person?
For now, humans aren’t on the menu for carnivorous plants. But what would it take for one to consume a person?
