New research from the US has challenged common understanding about plant species, but it brings good news for humanity.
Ecologist Mingzhen Lu from New York University (USA) and her colleagues have shown that many plant species on Earth are hiding an “underground world” previously unknown to humanity.
Writing in the scientific journal Nature Communications, the authors point out that many plant species have two root systems: Their “bodies,” besides the parts we already know from basic biology, also possess a deeply hidden underground structure.
This second, hidden root system lies deeper than the first and can help these plants reach at least an additional 1 meter into the deep soil.
To analyze these deeper root systems on a large scale, the researchers used a database of soil samples collected from depths greater than 1.8 meters at 44 locations worldwide, from the Alaskan tundra to tropical rainforests in Puerto Rico.
They discovered that up to 20% of plants at these locations exhibit this “bimodality” or dual root phenomenon.
The second root layer often reaches soil rich in nutrients like nitrogen, allowing plants to tap into these deep soil resources to supplement the main “food” they typically obtain from the surface soil.
More importantly, this hidden root system allows them to transport and store carbon deeper within the soil than previously thought. This could form the basis for more long-term underground carbon storage methods to mitigate the impacts of climate change, providing a crucial “way out” for humanity in this era of climate crisis.