Smoke chemicals cue some seeds to germinate after a wildfire
Certain fire-prone floras keep seeds dormant until smoke compounds or ash leachates signal that a burn has opened the canopy and enriched the soil surface.
Karrikin-related cues and other combustion products break dormancy in chaparral, fynbos, and some Australian bush species. Heat alone is not always the trigger — chemistry from smoke can be.
Wildfire writes chemical mail. Seeds that wait for that letter time their sprouting to a landscape briefly free of shade and litter competition.
Comments
0 comments