Rising CO2 levels might not be as good for plants as we thought

Long-term experiment finds a surprising flip in the rules for plant photosynthesis

field experiment of CO2 levels

GREENHOUSE GASSED  In a long-running field experiment in Minnesota, scientists are studying the effects of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels on plots of grassland.

Jacob Miller, Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Two major groups of plants have shown a surprising reversal of fortunes in the face of rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.