Climate-stressed trees get a boost from new microbial partnerships
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 - 09:03
in Biology & Nature
Plants live across wide ranges of heat and cold and rain and drought, but they don't fill their niches alone. Along with the animals and insects that live on and around a tree -- pitching in now and then to aid pollination or pest control or seed dispersal -- there are innumerable microbes in the soil (like various fungi that grow alongside tree roots). These microbes can blunt the normal stresses of life by helping trees draw in more nutrients and water or influencing the time they leaf out or flower to best match seasonal conditions.