Low Levels of Toxic Gas Found To Encourage Plant Growth

olsmeister writes "Hydrogen Sulfide is a toxic, flammable, foul-smelling gas that some theorize may have been at least partially responsible for some of Earth's mass extinctions, including the Permian-Triassic event, which killed well over half of the species on the planet. Now, thanks to a fortuitous accident, doctoral student at the University of Washington seems to have discovered that very low doses of the gas seems to greatly enhance plant growth, causing plants to germinate more quickly and grow larger. The finding could have far reaching implications for both food and biofuel production."

Comments

They've been experimenting with this in Texas too

[michelcolman]

Too bad they missed the "low dose" part of the article. Texans...

Suspended Animation stuff?

[devkrev]

Is this the same stuff that was being experimented with for suspended animation?

Re:Suspended Animation stuff?

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes.

http://phys.org/news115924695.html

An opportunity plants don't want to lose

[KiloByte]

This is not a case of Paracelsian "the dose makes the poison", these amounts are already harmful. Yet for the seeds, it's a hint that something bad happened to already grown plants in the area, and that if they germinate right now, they will have an opening they can grow unopposed into. This is a gamble, yeah -- the harmful agent might be still there in several days when it can possibly hurt the sapling, but considering how small a fraction of seeds get to produce a viable plant normally instead of being blocked by others, it's like Emperor's Day came early.

Re:An opportunity plants don't want to lose

[plover]

I was thinking along somewhat related lines, but I think the mechanisms might be more simple than "seedling roulette."

We see a pattern in orchids like dendrobiums, which are native to habitats where they undergo very dry winters. The prolonged drought of winter causes dormancy, which creates stress in the plants. The first taste of water after the drought triggers rapid growth and blooming flowers - in nature this immediately follows the arrival of the spring rains. We also know that if the spring water is inadequate, the plant will produce a few flowers and then die. It is often explained as "stress creates some kind of last-chance-to-propagate mechanism", but I believe it's simply another manifestation of the spring trigger conditions occurring in the dying plant.

It is also not uncommon for an orchid grown in a stressful artificial environment, such as one where it doesn't get the correct water or light, to produce a few meager flowers just before it dies. It certainly wouldn't surprise me that being exposed to a toxin like HS would create similar stresses in the plants, which could trigger the same mechanisms.

Random exposure to toxins would probably kill most of the plants. But I suspect controlled exposure could be exploited to produce flowers on a schedule, such as roses for Valentine's Day.

doctoral student

[wonkey_monkey]

doctoral student at the University of Washington seems to have discovered

"doctoral student"? The poor guy doesn't even have a name?

Re:doctoral student

[blackest_k]

might have something to do with how the plants were getting exposed to the hydrogen sulphide gas on a regular basis. could be embarrasing

Re:natural selection

[skovnymfe]

And then we have a rainforest full of trees that produce hydrogen sulfide. What could possibly go wrong?

Re:Yes please,

[Khyber]

"Well, sorry for not liking poisons round my food."

Boy, do I have some news for you. Almost every fertilizer we use is toxic to humans. Plants are this wonderful thing called a biological filter, and with the exception of some heavy metals, plants tend to break down most anything else and use it.

In this case, besides the germination and flowering results, plants use sulfides/sulfates for:

  Integral part of amino acids
  Helps develop enzymes and vitamins
  Promotes nodule formation on legumes
  Aids in seed production
  Necessary in chlorophyll formation (though it isn’t one of the constituents)

And a couple more things we haven't fully nailed down.