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Thigmomorphogenesis: On the mechanical properties of mechanically perturbed bean plants
Author(s) -
Jaffe Mordecai J.,
Telewski Frank W.,
Cooke Paul W.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
physiologia plantarum
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.351
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1399-3054
pISSN - 0031-9317
DOI - 10.1111/j.1399-3054.1984.tb05925.x
Subject(s) - phaseolus , wax , hardening (computing) , stiffness , horticulture , mechanical strength , materials science , flexibility (engineering) , composite material , bending , botany , biology , mathematics , statistics , layer (electronics)
The mechanical properties of control and mechanically perturbed (MP) bean stems ( Phaseolus vulgaris L., ev. Cherokee wax) were compared. The rubbed plants were greatly hardened against mechanical rupture by previous MP. This hardening was due to a dramatic increase in the flexibility of the stems, but not in their stiffness. The MP‐plants were able lo bend more than 90° without breaking, whereas the control plants broke after just slight bending. A comparison with other work reveals that different species utilize different tactics for achieving similar resistance to rupture due to mechanical stress.