Volatile-mediated plant–plant communication in natural beech forests

Abstract

Natural forests present complex environments due to abiotic and biotic heterogeneity. While studies on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) mediated plant–plant communication have been conducted in controlled environments such as laboratories, research in natural forests remains scarce. To determine whether beech (Fagus crenata) exhibits plant–plant communication in natural forests, we investigated plant hormones and leaf damage as defense responses considering wind direction, forest stand structure and genetic relatedness. Our findings indicated that trees closer to the VOCs source accumulated more salicylic acid than those farther away downwind, resulting in less damage from pathogens and herbivores. Conversely, there was no distance-dependent change in hormone levels or leaf damage upwind. Additionally, genetic relatedness between the VOC source tree and surrounding trees did not influence the levels of plant hormones or leaf damage. Thus, our results suggested that beech exhibits plant–plant communication in natural forests influenced by abiotic and biotic heterogeneity of forest ecosystems.