Floating garden in summer. Credit: Abigail Heath. Boulder, Colo., U.S.: Floating gardens sound so idyllic. Now, a study proves that they are more than just a pretty place. The study, by researchers at Illinois State University, demonstrates that such constructed gardens can have a measurable, positive impact on water quality. […]
A tree-lined street in Camden, north London GETTY IMAGES Urban areas are not all high-rise flats and offices, they are also where you’ll find many of the country’s trees. Two London boroughs – Camden and Croydon – were among the top 20 places in England and Wales with the most […]
Researchers are fine-tuning the application of plasma to agriculture to speed up germination and help plants grow strong. Ever since scientists discovered that plasma treatment leads to faster growth and higher yields of some agricultural crops, physicists, chemists, and biologists have been working together to tease out the mechanisms driving this phenomenon. […]
One of the main drivers of plant extinction is clearance of natural habitats GETTY IMAGES Two-fifths of the world’s plants are at risk of extinction, scientists have warned. Researchers say they are racing against time to name and describe new species, before they disappear. Plants hold huge promise as medicines, […]
A 23-million-year-old leaf preserved in a onetime New Zealand lake bed, key to past atmospheric conditions. One can see veins, glands along the teeth, and holes gnawed by insects, with resulting stunted growth and scar tissue. Credit: Jennifer Bannister/University of Otago A unique New Zealand deposit opens insights into how […]
Douglas firs are the most abundant trees in North America. Their ecological niche spans Southern Mexico to the Northern Rockies. Warming Will Reduce Trees’ Ability to Slow Climate Change New research suggests that the most abundant trees in North America absorb less carbon dioxide as the world’s temperature rises. The […]
Animation When cells don’t divide into proper copies of themselves, living things fail to grow as they should. For the first time, scientists now understand how a protein called TANGLED1 can lead to accurate cell division in plants. Inside cells are structures called microtubules, which act like highways for moving […]
Gardenia’s newly sequenced genome highlights how evolutionary tinkering transforms plants into some of nature’s great chemical-makers. Plants are some of nature’s most extraordinary chemists. Unlike animals, they can’t run from predators or pathogens. They can’t uproot themselves to seek out a mate or spread their seeds. So instead, they manufacture […]
An international team of scientists have identified candidate resistance genes that could protect ash trees from the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), a deadly pest that is expected to kill billions of trees worldwide. In the new study, published recently in Nature Ecology & Evolution, researchers from Queen Mary University of London […]
Two satellite images show vegetation change from fog in two areas of the Namib desert. The left image shows the areas during periods of lower fog; the right image shows the areas during periods of higher fog. Greener areas inside the squares indicate vegetation greening. Credit: Image courtesy of Lixin […]