Detection of electrical signaling between tomato plants raises interesting questions

Detection of electrical signaling between tomato plants raises interesting questions

Jim Steele

The tomato research, which focused on experimental study and mathematical modeling of electrical signal propagation between plants of the same species, opens new doors to questions about whether plants communicate across species through fungi.

"I think that it is definitely possible that signals can propagate through the root network and spread in the common ground or soil from a tomato plant to, let's say, an oak," Dr. Shtessel says. "The soil plays the role of a conductor."

Likewise, the nature of any messages being sent is unknown and the possibility of cognition was beyond the scope of the experiment. Dr. Shtessel calls those extremely interesting questions.

"No study of the cognitive processing of the electric signals passed and received by the plants was accomplished," he says. "Another issue is to study the plants' communications via electric waves through the air. This is a different story that has not been deeply studied yet."