Plants

Earth

Experiment: Can plants stop soil erosion?

Soil erosion washes pollutants into streams and rivers — but plants may help limit that.

Plants

Rampaging vines are slowly strangling tropical forests

Called lianas,these vines are growing out of control. They may cause tropical forests to absorb less carbon dioxide — worsening climate change.

Plants

This urban gardener is mimicking nature to create healthier plants

Urban garden specialist Kwesi Joseph is experimenting with rock dust and plants. He also helps New York City community and school gardens with gardening problems.

Plants

To spy this palm’s blooms and fruits, start digging underground

Plants across 33 families are known for subterranean flowering or fruiting. But this palm is extremely rare. It does both.

Physics

Here’s why blueberries aren’t blue — but appear to be

Blueberries actually have dark red pigments — no blue ones — in their skin. Tiny structures in the fruits’ waxy coat are what make them seem blue.

Plants

Scientists Say: Marcescence

Autumn turns to winter, yet some trees' dead leaves keep hanging on.

Animals

Pikmin’s plant-animal mashups don’t exist — but sun-powered animals do

Corals team up with photosynthetic zooxanthellae. Some sea slugs steal chloroplasts. How might animals and plants team up in Nintendo’s Pikmin games?

Animals

Scientists Say: Camouflage

Plants and animals alike hide in plain sight using this sneaky strategy.

Tech

Bits of trees can make and store energy for us to use

This cellulose and lignin, two major building blocks of trees, could lead to greener electronics.

Tech

Bionic plants and electric algae may usher in a greener future

Some can aid the climate by removing pollutants. Others would just avoid dirtying the environment in the first place.

Climate

Some tree leaves are finding it too hot for photosynthesis

Earth’s ongoing fever threatens to push entire forests toward this heat limit — and possible death.

Plants

Young corn leaves can ‘smell’ danger

As they mature, these leaves lose their ability to detect threatening scents.