Does soil hold memories?
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
More specifically, we’re wondering whether soil remembers droughts.
Ask Nichole Ginnan and team at the University of Kansas. They collected soil from across Kansas and exposed the microbes to wet or dry conditions. Months later, they planted grass in it.
Results? Even after thousands of microbial generations, drought memories persisted. Plants grown in drought-exposed soil changed on a genetic level. They turned on helpful genes that conserved water. The microbes seemed to share survival tips passed down through generations of dry weather.
So don’t panic if you miss a watering day. Your soil is used to a dry spell. It’ll be ok. But maybe the weekend.
Ginnan, N. A., Ford, N. M., Custódio, V., Gopaulchan, D., Jones, D., Wells, D., Salas-González, I., Moreno, Â., Castrillo, G., & Wagner, M. R. (2025). Precipitation legacy effects on soil microbiota facilitate adaptive drought responses in plants. Nature Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-025-02148-8