661-Pete wrote:You been reading Lord of the Rings again?Tangled Metal wrote:There was a documentary on woods last year based on research on an old area of ancient woodland in the UK. IIRC diseases that reach the wood and pass through it got defeated before it reached the other side. What was happening was communication through from one end of the wood to the other. The trees that were dying at the beginning of the outbreak of the disease was passing information to the other trees. This gave the later trees a headstart in their fight against the disease. Eventually enough solutions had been collectively tried to find the one that worked by protecting against the disease.
I seriously doubt if plants can send pheromones - or whatever the right word is - to other plants in their neighbourhood - but then I'm no plant expert, and maybe there are still facts about plant life waiting to be discovered. What I can say is what we observed last year. We often go up Ditchling Beacon (by the footpath, not by bike! ) and the path goes past an environmentally-significant ash grove, about 2Ha in area, an important feature of the local nature reserve. Until last year the wood appeared to be perfectly healthy and thriving. Last summer we went up that path, and alas! every single tree in the wood appeared to be dead - no doubt from the 'ash dieback' disease. If there's 'communication' between those trees, clearly it wasn't working for them....
I should add that we walked that path again much more recently, and there do seem to be some signs of recovery, mainly among saplings. Probably too late to make an impact in my lifetime.I thought as much.....BTW I'm not completely serious about this.
Actually the communication thing came from a BBC natural history documentary. The communication is through the roots and specifically the funghi growing in the soil and on the roots. As you probably know the weight of funghi in the soil in woods is about the same as the plants above the surface of the soil I believe was a fact the programme gave. Sounds unbelievable to me but generally BBC nature programmes are fact based.
I'm not serious about the idea science might find plants feel pain in the future. I think that phrase about not being serious was after that idea not the communication bit that was earlier (in that thread or an earlier thread I can't remember).
Nice edit BTW. I'd not like to quote one of my posts without editing neither.