How to "stand up" the drought?

Xinhua News Agency, Lanzhou, June 4 (Reporters Wenjing Zhang and Ma Sha) What are the best tricks for plants to "withstand" the drought? Recently, the research group of Professor Xiang Wen from the School of Life Sciences of Lanzhou University and the State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agroecosystems found the "code" for plants to survive under water shortages.

The research team selected 10 Caragana species distributed in different annual rainfall areas as the research objects.

However, in the long-term evolution process, how the drought adaptability of Caragana plants is formed remains to be revealed.

Studies have found that under drought stress conditions, that is, when plants lack water, the leaves of Caragana plants have a higher safety and effectiveness in water conduction, and thus adapt to arid ecological environment.

Xiang Wen told reporters that the stomata on the leaf surface are the "gateway" for the plant to exchange gas with the outside world.

The research team also found that in the high temperature weather in summer, because of the strong water supply capacity of the leaves of Caragana plants, it can meet the strong demand for water evaporation in arid habitats, reduce the leaf temperature, and improve the ability of the plants to withstand high temperatures outside.

"In desert areas, the amount of evaporation is large, and it is normal for plants to lack water.

Relevant research results have constructed a theoretical system for plants to adapt to arid habitats, which have important reference significance for vegetation restoration and ecological maintenance in arid and semi-arid regions in my country and the world.