Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Peter R. Crane, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen
Summary: A new microsporangiate cone, Renbernia zhoui, has been discovered in the Potomac Group in Virginia, USA. It exhibits distinct characteristics compared to similar species found previously.
REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Peter R. Crane, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen
Summary: The Early Cretaceous fossil flowers from Portugal and North America provide valuable insights into the diversity and evolution of early angiosperms. The new genus and species Catanthus dolichostemon offer important phylogenetic information, highlighting the complexity of early angiosperm diversity.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PLANT SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Mikihisa Yamada, Masaru K. Hojo, Akio Imamura
Summary: Seed dispersal by ants is crucial for plant migration, with elaiosomes providing nutritional rewards. However, some seeds without elaiosomes are also dispersed by ants, suggesting additional mechanisms. Research on Monotropastrum humile seeds demonstrated that volatile odors can induce ant-mediated seed dispersal, even in the absence of elaiosomes.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Peter R. Crane, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen
Summary: This study describes the discovery of two new genera and two new species of fossil seeds from the Early and mid-Cretaceous of Portugal and North America, providing new evidence for the origin of the Aristolochiaceae lineage. These seeds have a unique seed coat structure similar to extant Aristolochiaceae plants.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PLANT SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Jane E. Tuthill, Yvette K. Ortega, Dean E. Pearson
Summary: Most terrestrial plants disperse by seeds, but the relationship between seed traits and plant dispersion patterns is not well understood. This study examined seed traits of 48 plant species in western Montana grasslands to investigate this relationship. It was found that larger-seeded introduced plants were more likely to have dispersal adaptations, suggesting that they may need these adaptations to overcome limitations and barriers. Database seed masses correlated with local estimates, but locally collected data provided more valid results for community-level questions.
Article
Ecology
Nannan An, Nan Lu, Bojie Fu, Weiliang Chen, Maierdang Keyimu, Mengyu Wang
Summary: The study identified climate variability and seasonality variables as the primary drivers of root trait variation in seed plants in China, with plant growth form and mycorrhizal type having little effect on root trait variation.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Christopher J. Cleal, Barry A. Thomas
Summary: A more natural taxonomy of Carboniferous lyginopteridalean seed-plant fronds has been achieved by considering additional characters related to frond architecture and rachial features. This revised classification now recognizes eight fossil-genera, clarifying their diagnostic descriptions, nomenclatural types, and stratigraphical/chronological distribution. This improved classification will enhance studies on past plant diversity and floristics, and also requires reclassifying some fossil-species of fern fronds into fossil-genera defined by reproductive structures.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Dustin Wolkis, Kelli Jones, Tim Flynn, Mike DeMotta, Nina Ronsted
Summary: Historical herbarium collections can be used as a last resort for recovering extinct plant species, and may also provide valuable genetic diversity for critically endangered plants. The study explored the germination potential of critically endangered seed plant taxa from Hawaiian island, showing the importance of extending seed testing from extinct to critically endangered taxa.
CONSERVATION SCIENCE AND PRACTICE
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Jerry M. Baskin, Carol C. Baskin
Summary: The literature reviewed the seed germination of mostly economically non-important holoparasitic plants, revealing that these plants have small seeds with tiny embryos and endosperm. The research found that progress in germination of these plants has been limited, partly due to their lack of response to traditional seed dormancy-breaking treatments.
Article
Ecology
Fei Yu, Guangjie Li, Shanshan Wei, Xianfeng Yi, Jianmin Ma, Keming Ma, Guangwen Chen
Summary: This study examines the effects of different forest gap sizes on the seed-eating and scatter-hoarding behaviors of small rodents. The results show that acorns of Quercus variabilis are more likely to be scatter-hoarded in forest gaps, while they are more likely to be eaten in closed-canopy forests and forest edges. Additionally, the dispersal distance of acorns is significantly longer in forest gaps.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Selin Toledo, Alexander C. Bippus, Brian A. Atkinson, Allison W. Bronson, Alexandru M. F. Tomescu
Summary: The study documents a new Early Devonian plant, Kenrickia bivena, which is one of the few structurally complex euphyllophytes found in the Early Devonian, shedding light on early plant evolution. The inclusion of Kenrickia in analyses overturns previously established phylogenetic relationships among Radiatopses, emphasizing the need for increased taxon sampling in the Early Devonian. This discovery suggests the potential of a single origin of secondary growth in euphyllophytes and indicates early exploration of structural complexity by multiple lineages.
Article
Paleontology
Phillip E. Jardine, Carina Hoorn, Maxine A. M. Beer, Natasha Barbolini, Amber Woutersen, Giovanni Bogota-Angel, William D. Gosling, Wesley T. Fraser, Barry H. Lomax, Huasheng Huang, Matteo Sciumbata, Huajie He, Guillaume Dupont-Nivet
Summary: Sporopollenin, a highly resistant biopolymer forming the outer wall of pollen and spores, has opened up new avenues for palynological research. While there is strong taxonomic signature in isolated sporopollenin from extant grass pollen, substantial chemical differences were revealed between extant and fossil sporopollenin, tied to diagenetic changes and chemical derivates of sample processing. Directly integrating extant and late Quaternary chemical data is feasible with maintained sample processing routines, but classifying fossil specimens using extant training sets will be challenging due to consistent differences between extant and deeper time sporomorphs. Further research is needed to understand and simulate the effects of diagenetic processes on sporopollenin chemistry.
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
Lea Kliem, Stefanie Sievers-Glotzbach
Summary: The study shows that commons-oriented seed production promotes agroecological resilience more effectively compared to conventional private-property-based seed production. This approach fosters diversity at different levels, creates redundancy in seed supply channels, and reduces dependence on external resources and international markets. The governance structures of commons-based seed production contribute to resilience through participatory breeding approaches and greater access rights to seeds.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL SUSTAINABILITY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Sulaiman A. Al Yousef
Summary: The study found that soybean seeds harbored multiple fungal species, and ethanolic extracts of clove, cinnamon, garlic, and mint had a significant impact on their antifungal activity, with clove extract showing the highest efficacy.
Article
Biology
Marla Niza-Costa, Ana Sofia Rodriguez-dos Santos, Ines Rebelo-Romao, Maria Victoria Ferrer, Cristina Sequero Lopez, Juan Ignacio Vilchez
Summary: The use of microbiota associated with seeds can improve plant tolerance to stressful conditions, which is significant for agricultural production. This study found that strains isolated from legume seeds can enhance the growth and development of lentil plants under drought conditions, promising potential treatments for improving plant growth under stress.
Article
Plant Sciences
Andrew B. Leslie, Ian Glasspool, Patrick S. Herendeen, Niiden Ichinnorov, Patrick Knopf, Masamichi Takahashi, Peter R. Crane
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY
(2013)
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen, Federica Marone
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen, Peter R. Crane
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen, Peter K. Endress
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PLANT SCIENCES
(2013)
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen, Peter R. Crane
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PLANT SCIENCES
(2013)
Article
Paleontology
Else Marie Friis, Federica Marone, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen, Peter R. Crane, Marco Stampanoni
JOURNAL OF PALEONTOLOGY
(2014)
Review
Plant Sciences
Marion Chartier, Florian Jabbour, Sylvain Gerber, Philipp Mitteroecker, Herve Sauquet, Maria von Balthazar, Yannick Staedler, Peter R. Crane, Juerg Schoenenberger
Article
Plant Sciences
Andrew B. Leslie, Jeremy M. Beaulieu, Peter R. Crane, Michael J. Donoghue
Article
Plant Sciences
Mario Miguel Mendes, Jorge Dinis, Joao Pais, Else Marie Friis
REVIEW OF PALAEOBOTANY AND PALYNOLOGY
(2014)
Article
Plant Sciences
Else Marie Friis, Peter R. Crane, Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen
Article
Plant Sciences
Fabiany Herrera, Gongle Shi, Maya A. Bickner, Niiden Ichinnorov, Andrew B. Leslie, Peter R. Crane, Patrick S. Herendeen
Summary: The seed cones of extant Pinaceae show two mechanisms of seed release, flexers and shedders. Lepidocasus mellonae, found in the Aptian-Albian of Mongolia, represents the earliest and most detailed evidence of a shedder seed cone.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Gongle Shi, Fabiany Herrera, Patrick S. Herendeen, Elizabeth G. Clark, Peter R. Crane
Summary: The discovery of well-preserved fossils with recurved cupules from the Early Cretaceous in Inner Mongolia, China, suggests that these plants are fundamentally comparable to angiosperms in their structure, specifically the second integument of the ovule. This finding provides insight into the origin of angiosperms and will guide future research in seed plant phylogenetics.
Article
Plant Sciences
Fabiany Herrera, Weston L. Testo, Ashley R. Field, Elizabeth G. Clark, Patrick S. Herendeen, Peter R. Crane, Gongle Shi
Summary: Lycopodiaceae are a lineage of vascular plants with a long fossil history, and the discovery of Early Cretaceous lycopsid fossils provides compelling evidence for the early presence of crown Lycopodiaceae and Lycopodioideae. The discovery in Asia indicates the existence of crown Lycopodiaceae in the Early Cretaceous, and the similarities in stem anatomy with extant species help in understanding the growth and vascular anatomy of crown-group lycopsids.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Gongle Shi, Fabiany Herrera, Patrick S. Herendeen, Elizabeth G. Clark, Peter R. Crane
Summary: A new genus and species of corystosperm seed-bearing structure, Jarudia zhoui gen. et sp. nov., is described based on abundant silicified material collected from the Early Cretaceous Huolinhe Formation in China. This finding expands our understanding of the extinct corystosperm plants and raises questions about their phylogenetic circumscription and relationships with other seed plants.
JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATIC PALAEONTOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Peter Crane
Summary: Green spaces and botanical gardens play a vital role in providing sanctuary and relief during difficult times. To ensure their continuing viability, botanical gardens should take local action, increase relevance, and utilize electronic outreach to address environmental and societal concerns. Leadership from outstanding individuals is crucial for success.
PLANTS PEOPLE PLANET
(2022)