How flooding affects plants

Water from the river Avon flooding a field in front of Sopley Mill (Jan 2014). Photo by Mike Searle (CC BY-SA 2.0) via geograph.org.uk.

This winter has been an unusually stormy and wet one for the UK with rainfall for the December-January period being the highest since records began (1). The ground is saturated, and water levels in rivers and lakes have risen leading to flooding in several areas including the Somerset Levels and along the River Thames. Parts of the Somerset Levels have been continuously underwater since December, causing much disruption to the people who live there. But how does flooding affect plants?

The answer is that it depends. Some plants are perfectly happy growing in wet places e.g. bulrushes or water lilies, and are adapted to do so. However, in generally drier areas such as fields or pastures, the presence of excessive amounts of water can cause the plants to become stressed and even die.

A Brownie Guide science evening: root nodules, carbon dioxide and chocolate

Outside of my “scientific life” I volunteer with Girlguiding as an assistant leader with a local Brownie Guide unit. Every week for about an hour and a half I help run a range of activities for a group of 7-10 year old girls.

Last week we had a science evening. At the start of the session we split the girls into three groups to rotate around three activities:

Root nodules

This activity was all about my research on Medicago truncatula and the symbiosis (or friendship) it forms with soil bacteria. The idea of this activity was to show them some of the nodules found on the plant roots (where the bacteria live and supply nutrients to the plant) and then give them an opportunity to dig up some plants and find some themselves.

It’s getting hot out here: the challenges facing plants in hot weather

Image credit: Photograph by Dako99 distributed under a CC BY-SA 3.0 licence.

The UK is currently experiencing a heatwave. We all know the potential risks unusually high temperatures can pose to humans and animals but what about plants?

In all organisms high temperatures can alter cell properties. The phospholipid membranes surrounding the cell and internal organelles (nucleus, ER etc.) become more fluid (1).  Not only can this make the membranes less stable, it can also make them more permeable and affect the ability of other molecules such as signalling proteins to interact with them. High temperatures also alter the rates of chemical reactions within the cell and can lead to unfolding or misfolding of proteins. Ultimately these changes can lead to cell death so are best avoided!