Communication Between Plants

From our general knowledge about plants it is fair to infer that they interact with each other in competition for sunlight, nutrients and water. But whether plants actively communicate with each other, is both a fascinating and stimulating topic in plant ecology.
 

The theory behind communication of plants is that rooted and immobile plants, act to increase their biological fitness in their environment by taking cues from nearby plants that are being negatively affected by herbivores and pathogens. This theory poses many questions, such as; through what mechanism do plants signal to each other? Do all plant species do it? Is there a sense of altruism between plants that is necessary for their survival? Unfortunately there has not been much research into this realm of plant ecology. But Anurag (2000) has recognised that some studies have had success in demonstrating plant communication better than previous attempts. In a experiment conducted by Dolch and Tscharntke (2000). They extensively and accurately studied plant communication whereby they found that; when alder plants (Alnus glutinosa) were manually defoliated, the herbivorous alder beetles (Agelastica alni) distribution increased with further distance from the defoliated tree. From this they concluded, that defoliation of alder plants may trigger interplant resistance transfer to reduce the impacts of herbivores.

There are still many factors within this area of plant ecology that need researching. By delving into other relevant journal articles within this area of study I hope to further the understanding of plant communication in future blogs. 

If you want to read more on this topic refer to the articles in the reference list below.

  

Anurag, A 2000, 'Communication between plants: this time its real', Journal Club, vol. 15, no. 3,  pp. 446. viewed 5 March 2014, http://dx.doi.org.elibrary.jcu.edu.au/10.1016/S0169-5347(00)01987-X

Dolch. R, Tscharntke. T, 2000, 'Defoliation of alders (Alnus glutinosa) affects herbivory by leaf beetles on undamaged neighbours'. Oecologia, Springer-Verlag, vol. 125, no. 4, pp. 504-511. veiwed 7 March 2014, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s004420000482