06-14-2007, 09:59 AM
Quote:Plants are able to recognise their siblings, according to a study appearing today in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.
Researchers at McMaster University have found that plants get fiercely competitive when forced to share their pot with strangers of the same species, but theyre accommodating when potted with their siblings.
The ability to recognize and favour kin is common in animals, but this is the first time it has been shown in plants Susan Dudley, associate professor of biology at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, said. When plants share their pots, they get competitive and start growing more roots, which allows them to grab water and mineral nutrients before their neighbours get them. It appears, though, that they only do this when sharing a pot with unrelated plants; when they share a pot with family they dont increase their root growth...
full article: http://pressesc.com/01181755074_plants_r...e_siblings
the research study: http://www.pubs.royalsoc.ac.uk/media/bio...070232.pdf
