Global temperatures are on the rise, with experts projecting an increase of 2.7°F by 2050. Because plants cannot regulate their own temperatures, they are especially sensitive to these temperature changes.
At higher temperatures, plants instruct their root systems to grow faster, creating long roots that stretch through the soil to absorb more water and nutrients. While this response may help the plants in the short term, new research suggests it's both unsustainable for the plants and potentially harmful for humans in the long term.
Researchers at the Salk Institute have discovered that when certain plants respond to high temperatures with rapid root growth, they are reducing their levels of two important nutrients—nitrogen and phosphorus—which makes them less nutritious when consumed.
At the same time, if the soil contains low amounts of these nutrients, plants return to slower root growth and don't respond adequately to the higher temperatures.