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(American Journal of Botany. 2009;96:1205-1221.) doi: 10.3732/ajb.0900045 © 2009 Botanical Society of America, Inc.

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Moving with climbing plants from Charles Darwin’s time into the 21st century¹

² Université Montpellier 2, UMR AMAP Montpellier, F-34000 France; CNRS, UMR AMAP, Montpellier, F-34000 France ³ Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources, University of California, Davis, California 95616-8627

ABSTRACT

We provide an overview of research on climbing plants from Charles Darwin to the present day. Following Darwin’s interests, this review will focus on functional perspectives including attachment mechanisms and stem structure and function. We draw attention to a number of unsolved problems inviting future research. These include the mechanism for establishment of the twining habit, a quantitative description following the development of a tissue element through space and time, the chemistry of sticky exudates, the microstructure of xylem and the capacity for water storage, the vulnerability to embolism, and the mechanism for embolism repair. In conclusion we cite evidence that, in response to increasing CO₂ concentration, anthropic perturbation and/ or increasing forest fragmentation, lianas are increasing relative to tree species. In the 21st century, we are returning to the multiscale, multidisciplinary approach taken by Darwin to understand natural history.

Key Words: attachment mechanism • biomechanics • growth • hydraulic • lianas • plant anatomy • twining plants • vines

Received for publication 4 February 2009. Accepted for publication 26 May 2009.

FOOTNOTES

¹ The authors thank Prof. N. M. Holbrook for her inspiring work, stimulating ideas, and generous support and encouragement. They also thank N. Rowe for helpful discussion and comments on the manuscript. The authors are grateful to G. Caballé for providing liana wood sections from his collection.

⁴ Author for correspondence (e-mail: sandrine.isnard{at}cirad.fr); UMR AMAP (botAnique et bioinforMatique de l’Architecture des Plantes), TA A-51/PS2, Bd. de la Lironde 34398 Montpellier cedex 5, France

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