By Sven Batke - Associate Head of Research and Knowledge Exchange - Reader in Plant Science, Edge Hill University
The way plants communicate is nothing like ours. And yet, true silent conversations happen underground, in the shade of the undergrowth...
This morning, my six-year-old daughter walked into our bedroom and started reading a story from a book. She followed each word on the page, slowly forming full sentences. Sometimes, she stumbled over the words and asked for help with some "weird words," but by the end of the book, she had told us the story of a bear in the snow.
Illustration image Pixabay
Verbal communication is one of the many reasons behind the
evolutionary success of the human species. Whether it's to warn each other of danger or to
relay complex information, our ability to speak has been crucial.
But humans and
other animals are not the only ones to have developed
sophisticated modes of communication. Many people think plants are passive, but they have their own ways of interacting. The idea has been around for a while and even inspired Hollywood films, such as Avatar.
But recent scientific research shows that plant
communication systems might be
even more complex than we could have imagined...
These communication networks are sensitive and precariously balanced. Imagine how disrupted our world would be if all global network systems suddenly went down. The recent
CrowdStrike outages are just one example of the fragility of these systems and their importance to our modes of communication. It is the same for plants.
To understand how organisms that cannot speak can transmit information, it's essential to recognize that humans also communicate non-verbally. This happens through our senses: sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch.
For instance, natural gas companies add a chemical called
mercaptan to natural gas, giving it that characteristic "rotten egg" smell to warn us of leaks. Think also about how we've developed sign language, as well as the many
people who are able to read lips.
In addition to these senses, we also have
equilibrioception (the ability to maintain balance and posture),
proprioception (the sense of relative position and force of different parts of our body),
thermoception (the sense of temperature changes), and
nociception (the ability to feel pain). All these abilities have enabled humans to develop sophisticated means of communication.
Other species, particularly plants, use their senses to broadcast information in their own way.
Plants, the real gossipers
Most of us are familiar with the smell of freshly cut grass. The
volatile compounds released by the blades of grass, which we associate with that smell, are one of the ways these plants
warn nearby plants of a predator — or, in this case, a lawnmower. Rather than using auditory signals, plants rely on communication through chemicals. But plant communication doesn't stop at volatile compounds.
Recently, researchers have discovered just how interconnected plants are. They can send messages to their peers
through their roots, through
electrical signals, through
underground fungal networks, and even via
soil microbes. This has led to the realization that plants are true indiscreet gossipers.
An example of this comes from electrophysiology, a relatively new scientific field that studies how electrical signals within and between plants are communicated and interpreted. With significant advancements in technology and artificial intelligence (AI), this area of research has experienced rapid growth in recent years.
Scientists may soon make new discoveries. Recently, progress has been made to use, in
greenhouses, this electrical signaling communication of plants to control the irrigation of crops or detect their nutrient deficiencies.
Practically, scientists insert small electrical probes into plants, much like acupuncture needles, to test the effect of
changes in the electrical signals on key parameters, such as water transport, nutrient flow, and the conversion of light into sugars.
Researchers have even managed to influence plant behavior by sending electrical signals from mobile phones, allowing them to open or close the leaves of a famous carnivorous plant, the Venus flytrap.
Soon, we may be able to
fully translate the
language of our crops.
An underground internet in the undergrowth
Much of the communication between plants occurs underground, facilitated by vast fungal networks known as the
"Wood wide web". This
fungal network beneath the forest floor connects trees and plants, allowing them to share resources like water, nutrients, and information. Thanks to this system, older trees can help younger ones grow, and trees can
warn each other of certain dangers, such as pests.
This is a kind of
underground internet for trees and plants, helping them support and communicate with each other. The network is vast: more than
80% of plants are said to be connected, making it one of the oldest communication systems in the world.
Just as the internet allows us to connect, share ideas, knowledge, and information that can influence decision-making, this "wood wide web" allows plants to use symbiotic fungi to prepare for environmental changes.
In this context, the use of chemicals in soil, deforestation, and climate change can
disrupt this mode of communication, affecting the water cycle and nutrient flow. In other words, these new threats make plants less informed and less connected. The effects of the disruption of these networks have not yet been extensively researched.
However, we know that plant defense reactions and gene regulation can be
altered by their fungal network if they are connected to it.
Such communication breakdowns could therefore make them more vulnerable, complicating efforts to protect and restore ecosystems around the world. Scientists still have a lot to learn about these incredibly complex networks.
We know it is important to help children learn to read so they can navigate the world around them. It is just as important to ensure we don't disconnect plant communication. After all, we depend on plants for our wellbeing and survival.