Root communication Plants communicate with neighbouring plants and other organisms surrounding them . Above ground communication is articulated through stems leaves or flowers , and below ground communication is mediated by roots. Root communication specifically occurs through plant roots secreting Root exudates( a wide variety of molecules released by the plant into the soil) into the rhizosphere (zone of the soil surrounding a plant Root where the biology and chemistry of the soil are influenced by the root). The exudates includes organic compounds ,sugars, amino acids and enzymes. This process is known as rhizodeposition . In rhizodeposition , the microorganisms in the soil break down the exudates , releasing nutrients that can then be taken up by the roots. This is a form of mutualism between the microorganisms and plants that benefits from the products produced by microbes in the soil. The microorganisms provide beneficial effects to the plants ,such as protection against pathogens and they also help in nutrient cycling such as carbon cycle in which 25% of carbon( out of all the carbons obtained through photosynthesis) is released through the root and the undergoes rhizodeposition. Retrieved from: (https://www.hiddenvalleyhibiscus.com/botany/communication.htm#:~:text=So%20how%20do%20they %20do,thing%20in%20the%20root%20zone.) (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237651147_Root_Communication_The_Role_of_Root_Exud ates) (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhizosphere) Electrical signalling Plants have the unique ability to generate electrical signals (known as action potentials) which travel through specialised cells( known as plant neurons). These signals can be generated by various stimuli such as light, touch or even changes in temperature and the signals help plants in various ways, such a rapid communication between different parts of the plant, coordination of growth and development, and even defence against predators. Electrical signalling in plants is based on a difference in voltage between the inside of cells and the outside environment . This difference in voltage is created when ions( electrically charged atoms) are moved between the inside and the outside of the cell through the ion channels of the cell membrane. When stimulus is present , electrical signalling is generated and occurs very quickly to create an impulse which a response to the stimulus . This allows plants to react and then also adapts to their environment Examples of roles electrical signalling plays in plants are: 1. Touch response ( When plant is touched electrical signals are generated and transmitted to other parts of the plants, which then trigger closing of leaves or bending of stems) 2. Phototropism(Plants detect light via photoreceptor, electrical signals are then generated and help plants move towards light source) 3. Wound response (when plant is injured electrical signals are generated and help trigger defense mechanisms and healing processes) Retrieved from : (https://liu.se/en/news-item/fast-electrical-signals-mapped-in-plants-with-new-bioelectronictechnology) (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-3040.2006.01614.x) (https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2017.00684/full)
