La plant relationship function It is one of the three basic functions that living beings carry out and that are essential for their survival. Although it may seem like a complex issue, the truth is that it is simpler than you think.
We are going to try to explain it to you in the simplest way possible and without going into too many technicalities, so that you understand a little better how all those plants that you have at home are related to the environment and how happy they make you.
What is the relationship function of plants?
Vital functions are those that all living beings, regardless of their type, develop in order to survive and perpetuate the species. There are six vital functions that are: being born, breathing, feeding, adapting to the environment, growing and reproducing. But all of them are usually synthesized into three that are considered the most important: nutrition, relationship or interaction and reproduction.
The relationship function or interaction function is what allows living beings, in this case plants, receive information from their environment and respond to it appropriately in order to survive.
In the specific case of plants, the response to external stimuli is carried out through a complex physical and chemical mechanism that extends throughout the entire plant. For example, in case of drought, plants close their stomata, which are similar to skin pores, to keep water inside and avoid drying out.
Keep in mind that plants do not have a nervous system like animals. If an animal detects a stimulus that it believes to be dangerous, its nervous system prompts it to flee or fight. With plants this does not happen, which does not mean that they do not interact with their environment. However, their responses go largely unnoticed if we don't pay due attention.
Main relationship functions in plants
We are going to see in more detail some of the most typical ways that plants respond to stimuli that appear in their environment.
Phototropism
Have you ever had an etiolated plant? This is quite common in succulents. This is a phenomenon that occurs when the plant It doesn't get enough light. What it does then is direct their growth towards the light to capture more solar energy and be able to photosynthesize.
When one of your plants develops those long stems that are not always pretty, keep in mind that you are dealing with a plant relationship function, phototropism. Because this is what we have just seen, in directing growth towards the light.
gravitropism
La force of gravity it's what keeps us all literally glued to the ground, and plants are not immune to it. This is what explains how roots grow downward and stems grow upward.
The stems are "anchored" to the ground to support the plant, while phototropism leads the plant to grow towards the light.
Tigmotropism
Although the name of this plant relationship function is very complex, surely you have observed it on more than one occasion. Because this is what is happening when a vine or poto grows around a stake or guide.
It is the reaction that the plant has to a tactile or mechanical stimulus. If the vine senses that it has a smooth surface behind it, it will grow around it.
It is also what happens with those varieties of plants whose leaves or flowers close when we touch them. A clear example is the Mimosa Pudica, whose leaf folds in on itself when feeling pressure.
Plant communication: interactions between plants
As we are seeing, the relationship function of plants is basically the interaction between them and their environment. But what happens between them? Can they communicate in any way? Surely you have already intuited that yes. In fact, plants are capable of cooperating with each other, but also of competing with each other.
chemical communication
This is the most common way in which plants are related. through the release of chemicals into the air or soil They serve as signals to other plants, and can even attract certain insects and animals.
With this practical system, which humans are incapable of detecting, plants they warn each other if there is a herbivore nearby or a pathogen that could harm them, getting the rest to activate their defense mechanisms.
allelopathy
Surely it has happened to you that some species in your garden grows and grows non-stop, while the surrounding plants remain small. This is a case of allelopathy. What that growing plant does is release a series of chemical compounds that inhibit the growth of the others. Thus, that plant has it much easier to obtain more nutrients, light and water.
Here you have a very clear example of competition between plants. If the resources are insufficient, the strongest species use the relationship function of the plants to leave the rest out of the game.
Mycorrhizae
Fungi and plants are not always enemies, there are times when they can be allies. Soil fungi provide plants with nutrients, while they obtain sugars and organic compounds from the plant. This perfect symbiosis is produced through mycorrhizae, which are nothing more than the union between the roots of a plant and the fungi in the soil.
In addition, mycorrhizae can serve as an additional communication channel between plants if several are "hooked" on the same fungus.
Flowering Coordination
You will have observed that many species bloom at the same time or in very similar periods. This is not a coincidence or a whim of nature, the timing of the bloom helps attract pollinators and, with it, it increases the possibilities of reproduction of the plants.
The relationship function of plants opens the door to a wonderful world in which those living beings that accompany us, and that seem so static, interact with each other right before our noses without our being aware of it. Did you know her?