I’m not drinking alone! I’ve got… my plant friends!
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Yes, plants have Thirsty Thursday too, especially in droughts. So, scientists want to stabilize crop growth during water restriction. Could the answer be… alcohol?
Raise your glass to Khurram Bashir and Lahore University of Management Sciences.
They hydrated wheat and rice crops with a water-and-ethanol solution. Then… they simulated drought conditions.
Results? The ethanol-treated plants conserved MORE water than untreated plants by closing little pores called stomata.
LATER, the ethanol-treated plants also MADE and USED more sugar to grow!
Climate change and environmental stressors are threatening our food security. The researchers believe microdosing plants with ethanol could curb these effects.
In short, put alcohol in your pot! That didn’t come out right.
Reference:
Bashir, K., Todaka, D., Rasheed, S., Matsui, A., Ahmad, Z., Sako, K., Utsumi, Y., Vu, A. T., Tanaka, M., Takahashi, S., Ishida, J., Tsuboi, Y., Watanabe, S., Kanno, Y., Ando, E., Shin, K.-C., Seito, M., Motegi, H., Sato, M., … Seki, M. (2022). Ethanol-mediated novel survival strategy against drought stress in plants. Plant and Cell Physiology. https://doi.org/10.1093/pcp/pcac114