Disentangling root system responses to neighbours: identification of novel root behavioural strategies

Plants live in a social environment, interacting with the roots and shoots of neighbours. Life with neighbours is a chronic stress, with different behaviours altering the social dynamics. To understand root behavioural strategies in response to neighbours, we observed root growth for 20 species. There was no single response, and instead a continuum of responses from avoidance to aggregation near neighbours. Species were capable of two strategies, (1) location-sensitivity, adjusting the vertical and horizontal placement of roots, and (2) size-sensitivity, reducing root system size. Overall, there is surprising complexity in how plants respond to social environments, with implications for resource use, coexistence, and production.

• Publication year

  2015

• Venue

  AoB Plants

• Publication date

  2015-05-27

• Fields of study

  Biology, Medicine, Environmental Science

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1093/aobpla/plv059PMID 26019230PMCID 4512042
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar, PubMed

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

• Patterns of phylogenetic diversity are linked to invasion impacts, not invasion resistance, in a native grassland.

  2014cited by this paper
• An ideal free distribution explains the root production of plants that do not engage in a tragedy of the commons game

  2014cited by this paper
• Root and shoot competition: a meta‐analysis

  2013cited by this paper
• Early Root Overproduction Not Triggered by Nutrients Decisive for Competitive Success Belowground

  2013cited by this paper
• Genotypic recognition and spatial responses by rice roots

  2013influential reference
• Conservatism of responses to environmental change is rare under natural conditions in a native grassland

  2013cited by this paper
• Game theory and plant ecology.

  2013cited by this paper
• Interactive effects of nutrient heterogeneity and competition: implications for root foraging theory?

  2012cited by this paper
• Detect thy neighbor: identity recognition at the root level in plants.

  2012cited by this paper
• The Behavioral Ecology of Nutrient Foraging by Plants

  2011cited by this paper
• Emergent insights from the synthesis of conceptual frameworks for biological invasions.

  2011influential reference
• Are competitive effect and response two sides of the same coin, or fundamentally different?

  2010cited by this paper
• Unveiling below‐ground species abundance in a biodiversity experiment: a test of vertical niche differentiation among grassland species

  2010cited by this paper
• Plants Integrate Information About Nutrients and Neighbors

  2010cited by this paper
• Shoot, but not root, competition reduces community diversity in experimental mesocosms

  2009cited by this paper
• Kin recognition: Competition and cooperation in Impatiens (Balsaminaceae).

  2009cited by this paper
• Improving the scale and precision of hypotheses to explain root foraging ability.

  2008cited by this paper
• When Competition Does Not Matter: Grassland Diversity and Community Composition

  2008cited by this paper
• Does phylogenetic relatedness influence the strength of competition among vascular plants

  2008cited by this paper
• Revisiting the classics: considering nonconsumptive effects in textbook examples of predator-prey interactions.

  2008cited by this paper
• A Framework for Plant Behavior

  2008cited by this paper
• Kin recognition in an annual plant

  2007cited by this paper
• Plant ecology: Family roots

  2007cited by this paper
• Effects of physical connection and genetic identity of neighbouring ramets on root-placement patterns in two clonal species.

  2007cited by this paper
• Aggregative Root Placement: A Feature During Interspecific Competition in Inland Sand-Dune Habitats

  2006cited by this paper
• Root competition: beyond resource depletion

  2006cited by this paper
• Plant Phenotypic Plasticity Belowground: A Phylogenetic Perspective on Root Foraging Trade‐Offs

  2005cited by this paper
• Supply pre-emption, not concentration reduction, is the mechanism of competition for nutrients.

  2005cited by this paper
• Plant coexistence and the niche

  2004cited by this paper
• Self/non‐self discrimination in roots

  2003cited by this paper
• Rooting depths, lateral root spreads and below‐ground/above‐ground allometries of plants in water‐limited ecosystems

  2002cited by this paper
• Intra-plant versus Inter-plant Root Competition in Beans: avoidance, resource matching or tragedy of the commons

  2002cited by this paper
• Root cooperation in a clonal plant: connected strawberries segregate roots

  2002cited by this paper
• Tragedy of the commons as a result of root competition

  2001influential reference
• Local interactions, dispersal, and native and exotic plant diversity along a California stream

  2001cited by this paper
• THE META‐ANALYSIS OF RESPONSE RATIOS IN EXPERIMENTAL ECOLOGY

  1999cited by this paper
• Fertilization effects on interactions between above-and belowground competition in an old field

  1999cited by this paper
• Spatial Root Segregation: Are Plants Territorial?

  1999cited by this paper
• Integrated screening validates primary axes of specialisation in plants

  1997cited by this paper
• PLANT COMPETITION UNDERGROUND

  1997cited by this paper
• The shade avoidance syndrome: multiple responses mediated by multiple phytochromes

  1997cited by this paper
• Species interactions at the level of fine roots in the field: influence of soil nutrient heterogeneity and plant size

  1996cited by this paper
• Testing the Adaptive Plasticity Hypothesis: Density-Dependent Selection on Manipulated Stem Length in Impatiens capensis

  1996cited by this paper
• The Effect of Neighbors on Root Distribution in a Creosotebush (Larrea Tridentata) Population

  1994cited by this paper
• Root communication among desert shrubs.

  1991cited by this paper
• A trade-off between scale and precision in resource foraging

  1991influential reference
• A Framework for Plant Behavior

  1989cited by this paper
• Interspecific Competition and Niche Differentiation between Plantago-Lanceolata and Anthoxanthum-Odoratum in a Natural Hayfield

  1983cited by this paper
• Food Production and Competitor Density as the Determinants of Feeding Territory Size

  1980cited by this paper
• Underground Niche Separation in Successional Plants

  1976cited by this paper
• A method for estimating the lengths and spatial patterns of two interpenetrating root systems

  1972cited by this paper
• A method for studying spatial relationships between the root systems of two neighbouring plants

  1967cited by this paper

• Behavioral Responses of Tomato Plants to Cultivated Varieties of Potato‐Onion

  2026cites this paper
• Mixed-sex plantations of Populus cathayana enhance phosphorus acquisition through asymmetric rhizospheric complementarity

  2026cites this paper
• Early belowground interactions in lupin–wheat intercropping assessed by a simple root phenotyping approach

  2025cites this paper
• Isotopic evidence of hydrological niche segregation and species coexisting mechanism of desert shrubs Reaumuria songarica and Nitraria sphaerocarpa

  2025cites this paper
• The effects of a neighbour and its identity on roots’ plastic growth

  2025cites this paper
• Belowground plant carbon and nitrogen exchange: plant-derived carbon inputs and pore structure formation

  2025cites this paper
• Plant diversity loss has limited effects on below‐ground biomass and traits but alters community short‐term root production in a species‐rich grassland

  2025cites this paper
• A Meta-Analysis of Response Strategies and Interfering Factors of Kin Recognition in Plants

  2025cites this paper
• Neighbor Relatedness Contributes to Improvement in Grain Yields in Rice Cultivar Mixtures

  2025cites this paper
• Chemically Mediated Plant–Plant Interactions: Allelopathy and Allelobiosis

  2024cites this paper
• Root‐secreted (−)‐loliolide mediates chemical defense in rice and wheat against pests

  2024cites this paper
• Belowground plant competition: uncoupling root response strategies of peas

  2024cites this paper
• Discrimination of relatedness drives rice flowering and reproduction in cultivar mixtures.

  2024cites this paper
• Soybean triggers tomato root horizontal asymmetry by modifying capture of P rather than N under low nutrient condition

  2024cites this paper
• Kin Recognition in an Herbicide-Resistant Barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli L.) Biotype

  2023cites this paper
• Allelochemicals and soil microorganisms jointly mediate sex-specific belowground interactions in dioecious Populus cathayana.

  2023cites this paper
• Changes in the Amount and Distribution of Soil Nutrients and Neighbours Have Differential Impacts on Root and Shoot Architecture in Wheat (Triticum aestivum)

  2023cites this paper
• Phenotypic Plasticity Drives the Successful Expansion of the Invasive Plant Pedicularis kansuensis in Bayanbulak, China

  2023cites this paper
• Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica mediates interspecific belowground chemical interactions through root exudates

  2022cites this paper
• Response of Cucumis sativus to Neighbors in a Species-Specific Manner

  2022cites this paper
• Pisum sativum has no competitive responses to neighbors: A case study in (non)reproducible plant biology

  2022cites this paper
• Root placement patterns in allelopathic plant-plant interactions.

  2022cites this paper
• Impact of elevated temperature on root traits and microbial interaction in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) genotypes

  2022cites this paper
• Commercial Eucalyptus Plantations with Taungya System: Analysis of Tree Root Biomass

  2022cites this paper
• Root tragedy of the commons: Revisiting the mechanisms of a misunderstood theory

  2022cites this paper
• The impact of root exudates, volatile organic compounds, and common mycorrhizal networks on root system architecture in root-root interactions

  2022cites this paper
• Root Tragedy of the Commons: What is it and Where Might it Occur?

  2022cites this paper
• Neighbors, Drought, and Nitrogen Application Affect the Root Morphological Plasticity of Dalbergia odorifera

  2021cites this paper
• Limited evidence of vertical fine-root segregation in a subtropical forest.

  2021cites this paper
• The lupeol content in Machaerium species by HPLC-APCI-MS/MS and the allelopathic action

  2021cites this paper
• Root responses to neighbors depend on neighbor identity and resource distribution

  2021influential citation
• Between the devil and the deep blue sea: herbivory induces foraging for and uptake of cadmium in a metal hyperaccumulating plant

  2021cites this paper
• Focusing on individual plants to understand community scale biodiversity effects: the case of root distribution in grasslands

  2021cites this paper
• Disentangling competitive processes to better understand their drivers and consequences in a native grassland community

  2021cites this paper
• Can root traits predict communities of soil nematodes in restored northern prairies?

  2020cites this paper
• Coarse root architecture: Neighbourhood and abiotic environmental effects on five tropical tree species growing in mixtures and monocultures

  2020cites this paper
• The multi-response of root foraging strategy to a neighbor, soil heterogeneity and earthworm

  2020cites this paper
• Neighbourhood‐dependent root distributions and the consequences on root separation in arid ecosystems

  2020cites this paper
• Fine‐scale root community structure in the field: Species aggregations change with root density

  2020cites this paper
• High Temperature can Change Root System Architecture and Intensify Root Interactions of Plant Seedlings

  2020cites this paper
• Can root traits predict communities of soil nematodes in restored northern prairies?

  2020cites this paper
• Plant competitive behaviour: relationships with functional traits and soil processes

  2019cites this paper
• Intercropping

  2019cites this paper
• Best behaviour: A proposal for a non-binary conceptualization of behaviour in biology.

  2019cites this paper
• Effects of neighbour location and nutrient distributions on root foraging behaviour of the common sunflower

  2019cites this paper
• Belowground competition can influence the evolution of root traits

  2019cites this paper
• Controlled Environment Horticulture: Improving Quality of Vegetables and Medicinal Plants

  2019cites this paper
• Broadleaf trees mediate chemically the growth of Chinese fir through root exudates

  2019cites this paper
• Competition alters predicted forest carbon cycle responses to nitrogen availability and elevated CO2: simulations using an explicitly competitive, game-theoretic vegetation demographic model

  2019cites this paper
• Species‐specific size vulnerabilities in a competitive arena: Nutrient heterogeneity and soil fertility alter plant competitive size asymmetries

  2019cites this paper
• Sex‐specific selection on plant architecture through “budget” and “direct” effects in experimental populations of the wind‐pollinated herb, Mercurialis annua

  2019cites this paper
• An Optimized Rhizobox Protocol to Visualize Root Growth and Responsiveness to Localized Nutrients.

  2018cites this paper
• Different sets of belowground traits predict the ability of plant species to suppress and tolerate their competitors

  2018cites this paper
• A new method for the rapid characterization of root growth and distribution using digital image correlation.

  2018cites this paper
• In the land of plenty: catch crops trigger nitrogen uptake by soil microorganisms

  2018cites this paper
• Kin recognition in rice (Oryza sativa) lines.

  2018cites this paper
• Methods A new method for the rapid characterization of root growth and distribution using digital image correlation

  2018cites this paper
• Using root traits to understand temporal changes in biodiversity effects in grassland mixtures

  2018cites this paper
• Root interactions in a diverse grassland : the role of root traits in belowground productivity and decomposition

  2018influential citation
• Below‐ground complementarity effects in a grassland biodiversity experiment are related to deep‐rooting species

  2018cites this paper
• Vertical root distribution of individual species in a mountain grassland community: Does it respond to neighbours?

  2018cites this paper
• The positive effect of biodiversity : Using root traits to understand effects of plant diversity and drought on grassland productivity

  2018cites this paper
• Fine root responses to temporal nutrient heterogeneity and competition in seedlings of two tree species with different rooting strategies

  2018cites this paper
• Wheat root length and not branching is altered in the presence of neighbours, including blackgrass

  2017cites this paper
• Interference of allelopathic rice with penoxsulam-resistant barnyardgrass.

  2017cites this paper
• Interference of allelopathic rice with paddy weeds at the root level.

  2017cites this paper
• Root-mediated sex recognition in a dioecious tree

  2017cites this paper
• The reciprocal relationship between competition and intraspecific trait variation

  2016cites this paper
• Can root trait diversity explain complementarity effects in a grassland biodiversity experiment?

  2016cites this paper
• Co-occurring grassland species vary in their responses to fine-scale soil heterogeneity

  2016cites this paper
• Effect of root contact on pollen competitive ability in a hermaphroditic winter-annual herb

  2016influential citation
• Short Communication SPECIAL ISSUE: Using Ideas from Behavioural Ecology

  2015cites this paper
• behaviour into plant ecology and biology

  2015cites this paper
• A sample article title

  2015cites this paper