This week I decided to do something a little bit different
and incorporate a video into my blog. This is so you can all view an expert’s opinion,
and gain some insight into the topic of plant communication. In previous blogs
I have been talking about the different mechanisms behind plant communication. This
incorporates the relationship between mycorrhizae, and plant roots. Mycorrhizae and plant roots have a symbiotic relationship
in which they both benefit. Mycorrhiza forms fine filaments that spread out in
the soil and act as root extensions. These can often absorb more nutrients and
water than the plant roots themselves in return the plant supplies sugars
synthesized during photosynthesis to the mycorrhizae (Abell 2014). Studies have
led to the conclusion that through these mycorrhizae connections and extensions
plants can communicate with each other.
This is a brief overview of the relationship between
mycorrhizae and plants and how they use these mycorrhizae to communicate with each
other. In future blogs I will discuss the specific studies that have been
undertaken in order to demonstrate this theory.
Video- Do trees communicate 2012
If you feel like having a read of on this topic, this is a link to an article posted by BBC called “Fungus network 'plays role in plant communication” which gives a brief overview. http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-22462855
References
Dr Abell, S 2014, ‘Fungi in restoration’, Lecture note
discussed in Restoration Ecology (BZ2480) at James Cook University on Thursday 20th
of March 2014.
Video- Do trees Communicate 2012, http://youtu.be/iSGPNm3bFmQ, UBC Faculty
of Forestry
Nice video. The relationship between fungi and plants is a complex, fascinating one and its quite easy to accept that there must be loads of communication happening between individual plants, as well as between the fungi and the plants. I loved the comparison to the human brain. Do you think that communication between plants is disrupted by large-scale deforestation and do you think that plants “lose” information by this process?
ReplyDeleteI absolutely think that large scale deforestation has an impact on plant communication. If you mess up the connections of roots and mycorrizae and their connections with other plants in the soil, they lose the capability to communicate with each other. If this happens they could lose the capability to cue in on certain thing that may negatively effect them. I think everything is connected in some way or another.
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