Injured leaves release volatile cues that warn neighboring plants
When insects chew a leaf, many plants vent airborne compounds — green-leaf volatiles and other signals — that neighboring plants and even distant branches can detect.
Receivers often ramp up defensive chemicals or toughen tissues before the herbivores arrive. Predatory insects that hunt pests may also follow the same scent plumes.
A wound can be a broadcast. Plant “talk” is chemistry on the wind, turning private damage into a neighborhood early-warning system.
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