Plants

New research on strange cycad plants offers a glimpse into the prehistoric origins of pollination

If you want to know where the best leaf peeping will be this year, climate science and weather can provide the answer

About nine million years ago, a hybridization involving the lineage of another farmers market star gave rise to the modern-day cultivated potato

Humid heat is blanketing the eastern U.S. this week, exacerbated by “corn sweat” in the Midwest

New evidence shows plant leaves absorb airborne microplastics, a previously overlooked route for the particles to enter crops that has implications for ecology and human health

One species of tropical tree seems not only to survive lightning strikes but also to thrive because of them

Botanist Mason Heberling challenges how we think about invasive species and our role in their spread.

A tiny, woolly flower found hiding in Texas’s Big Bend National Park shows the intriguing strangeness of sunflowers

Microplastics can cut a plant’s ability to photosynthesize by up to 12 percent, new research shows

Learn which molecules are responsible for giving Christmas trees their distinct, crisp-yet-spicy scent

O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum, where’s your instruction manual? Here’s how to make the most of your Christmas tree

Evolution is often depicted as a steady forward march from simple to complex forms. But new research shows that certain ferns can evolve “backward”