The volatile plant hormone ethylene allows plant roots to sense and avoid compacted soils, researchers report. Rendering roots insensitive to ethylene allowed them to penetrate compacted soils more ...

Foot traffic, lawn mowing and vehicular traffic can all cause soil compaction. These movements seem like minor weight on the ground to actually compress the soil tightly, but it does. Compacted soils ...

Most plants are rooted in the ground, and they are highly dependent on the surrounding soils. Most experts agree that 80% of a tree’s roots are made up of the fleshy feeder root variety which function ...

Something strange is happening in gardens, farms, and backyard beds across the country, and seasoned growers are starting to ...

A previously unknown root trait allows some cereal plants to grow deeper roots capable of punching through dry, hard, compacted soils, according to researchers, who suggest that harnessing the ...

Most terrestrial plants are highly dependent on the soil for their well-being. A very favorable soil contains 50 percent open “pore” space, 45 percent minerals, and 5 percent organic material. The ...