Shaped through light

Shaped through light Plants adapt their appearance to their environment. Plants grow, for example, more in hight when standing in the shadow. Light also influences the number of branches. But how this is regulated was up to now not clear. Now researchers from China and the UK showed how light regulates bud outgrow. How andContinue reading “Shaped through light”

Misleidende bloemen

Misleidende bloemen Planten hebben veel manieren om insecten zo ver te krijgen om hun bloemen te bestuiven. Een daarvan is het met hun bloemen nabootsen van vrouwelijke insecten. Zo lokken ze de mannetjes die in hun poging om seks te hebben de bloem bestuiven. Dit is een aanpassing die veel voorkomt bij orchideeën. Maar overContinue reading “Misleidende bloemen”

Misleading flowers

Pattern The stomata in the leaf of a plant are more or less equally distributed. They are forming a pattern. But not at the moment of germination, then there are no stomata. Afterwards they are formed supper quickly. Researchers from America now discovered that already during embryo development this stomata pattern is being formed. TheContinue reading “Misleading flowers”

Chemical mines

Chemical mines Lots of our crops miss defence mechanisms against insects. A defence that is precent in their wild relatives. And to be honest, for a long time a good insect defence mechanism was not a top priority for crops. As pesticides had taken over this job. But now farmers put pesticides aside, it isContinue reading “Chemical mines”