In Defense of Plants Podcast
Plants are everything. They are also incredibly interesting. From the smallest duckweed to the tallest redwood, the botanical world is full of wonder. Tune in for a podcast celebrating everything botany.
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 52 minutes
- Episodes
- 301
- Years Active
- 2019 - 2025
Ep. 441 - Seed Acceleration
What do witch hazel seeds and a speeding bullet have in common? Acceleration! Join me and Justin Jorge as we explore the ecomechanics of seed dispersal in Loropetalum chinense, Hamamelis virginiana a…
00:42:16 |
Sun 01 Oct 2023
Ep. 440 - Plants, Bees, and the Microbes They Share
Besides pollination, what do flowers and bees have in common? Microbes, of course! From mutualists to pathogens and everything in between, Dr. Quinn McFrederick wants to know how plants, bees, and mi…
01:01:59 |
Sun 24 Sep 2023
Ep. 439 - Inside the Illicit Succulent Trade
Succulent poaching is a global black market business. The demand for succulents of all kinds is putting undue pressure of myriad species, many of which are on the brink of extinction. Join me and Dr.…
00:53:40 |
Sun 17 Sep 2023
Ep. 438 - Dinosaurs & Plants Revisited
Who hasn't marveled at the fossilized remains of a dinosaur? Though their lineage lives on today in the form of birds, historically, dinosaurs were once far more diverse. Needless to say, they shaped…
00:36:01 |
Sun 10 Sep 2023
Ep. 437 - Save the Shoal Lily
The shoal lily (Hymenocallis coronaria) is a truly special plant. It is found in only a few rivers throughout southeastern North America where it will only grow in rocky shoals. It makes its living b…
00:42:03 |
Sun 03 Sep 2023
Ep. 436 - Red Spruce Restoration
Plants are habitat! This means that to restore ecosystems, we would be wise to start with plants. Such is the case for the spruce-fir forests of southern Appalachia, which are among the rarest habita…
00:53:15 |
Sun 27 Aug 2023
Ep. 435 - Chara Revisited
Chara represent the earliest stages of true plant evolution. They are also model organisms for a wide variety of research questions. Join me as we revisit an intriguing discussion with Dr. Mary Bisso…
00:40:07 |
Sun 20 Aug 2023
Ep. 434 - Moths are Important Pollinators
This episode celebrates moths as pollinators. We ignore or even malign moths at our own peril. Dr. Stephen Robertson joins us to talk about how even crop pests can act as important pollinators. From …
00:48:04 |
Sun 13 Aug 2023
Ep. 433 - What Drives Orchid Diversity?
What drives orchid evolution? Why are places like Colombia so rich in orchid diversity? What constitutes a species across different orchid genera? Questions like these are what drive Dr. Tatiana Aria…
00:37:44 |
Sun 06 Aug 2023
Ep. 432 - The Importance of Seagrass
With approximately 60 species spread across four families, seagrasses are a wonderfully diverse group of marine aquatic plants. They are also extremely important both ecologically and economically. F…
00:52:40 |
Sun 30 Jul 2023
Ep. 431 - The Mysteries of Lycopod Evolution
Lycopods and their relatives enjoy a nearly global distribution today, but extant diversity is still a mere shadow of what it once was. My guest today is Paleobotanist Meg Nibbelink and she is workin…
00:59:13 |
Sun 23 Jul 2023
Ep. 430 - Seedlings in the Mycorrhizal Network
What affects mycorrhizal communities? How do these communities influence trees and their seedlings? Do the relationships differ between angiosperms and gymnosperms? Where do we draw the line between …
01:04:55 |
Sun 16 Jul 2023
Ep. 429 - Ancient Leaf Homes Revisited
Plants and arthropods have a long evolutionary history that involves plenty of interaction. If you know where to look, evidence of such history can be found in fossil plant remains. We revisit a disc…
00:50:58 |
Sun 09 Jul 2023
Ep. 428 - Bama Flora
Alabama is known for things like football, but thanks to the efforts of people like Dr. Brian Keener, it is also coming to be known for its bewildering plant diversity. North America's glacial past c…
00:47:40 |
Sun 02 Jul 2023
Ep. 427 - Unraveling the Mysteries of Mycorrhizal Networks
In this episode, we continue our journey in the world of mycorrhizal interactions with Dr. Jason Hoeksema. Join us as we investigate the ecological and evolutionary consequences of interactions betwe…
00:46:48 |
Sun 25 Jun 2023
Ep. 426 - Plants and Habitat Fragmentation
How does habitat size affect plant populations? What happens to plants and insects when two smaller habitats are connected by a habitat corridor? These are the kinds of questions Dr. Julian Resasco l…
00:45:20 |
Sun 18 Jun 2023
Ep. 425 - What Data Tell Us About the "Wood Wide Web"
The concept of the wood wide web in which trees are connected with one another via underground fungal networks has captured imaginations around the globe. The idea that trees may be sharing resources…
00:50:58 |
Sun 11 Jun 2023
Ep. 424 - Uncovering the Mysteries of Galls
Galls are perplexingly complex and, in many ways, mysterious structures. Galls are induced by another organism living within the tissues of the host plant. They can occur on a variety of plant organs…
00:48:09 |
Sun 04 Jun 2023
Ep. 423 - Plant-Microbe Interactions are Complex
It is impossible to make broad generalizations about the complex relationships between plants and microbes, but such challenges have not stopped Dr. Anny Chung from studying them. As you will here, t…
00:49:24 |
Sun 28 May 2023
Ep. 422 - Investigating Invasiveness
What makes some plants invasive? This is an extremely complex question with many possible answers, but that hasn't stopped Dr. Kali Mattingly from tackling a piece of the puzzle. From leaf, root, and…
00:49:51 |
Sun 21 May 2023
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