Plants

Tech

This robot grows like a plant

A new soft robot navigates its environment by growing in a manner inspired by plants.

Genetics

How a crop-destroying fungus mutated to infect wheat

Study details how wheat got a new pathogen called blast fungus.

Plants

Hermaphrodite wildflower has its own battle of the sexes

A new example of sexual conflict shows up in a plant with a troublesome pollinator.

Plants

How to eavesdrop on kelp

Sounds reverberating through a kelp bed can be linked to environmental factors, suggesting a low-key way to monitor undersea communities.

Plants

Petunias spread their scent using pushy proteins

Scent molecules hitch a ride on a particular protein to escape flowers.

Plants

Floral curve test shows what’s great for a moth is not so good for a flower

3-D printed flowers reveal a hidden conflict between a hawk moth and the flowers it pollinates.

Plants

Genetic switch offers clue to why grasses are survival masters

Scientists have identified a genetic switch that helps grasses regulate their carbon dioxide intake.

Animals

How one enslaving wasp eats through another

A wasp that forces oaks to grow a gall gets tricked into digging an escape tunnel for its killers.

Plants

Enzymes aid rice plants’ arsenic defenses

Rice plant roots have natural defenses against arsenic.

Plants

Big genetics study blazes path for bringing back tomato flavor

Combining taste tests with genetics suggests what makes heirloom varieties tastier than mass-market tomatoes.

Ecosystems

In debate over origin of fairy circles, both sides might be right

Odd bare spots called fairy circles in African grasslands might be caused by both termites and plants.

Life

A message to rock climbers: Be kind to nature

Scientists are only just starting to figure out the impacts that the sport of rock climbing is having on cliff ecosystems.