Plants overproduce roots to secure resources nearby but avoid costly trips to neighbors' patches We are used to human behavior, and the actions of other animals, being described as selfish, aggressive, or cooperative. Such words come up less often when contemplating plants. Yet plants too have evolved a fascinating array of behavioral strategies in their struggle for resources, although these are hard to demonstrate and quantify. Whether and when it pays for plants to selfishly overproduce roots and preempt resource capture by competitors, or cooperate by restraining root growth, has been the subject of extended debate (1, 2). On page 1197 of this issue, Cabal et al. (3) tackle this question with a new theoretical model and an empirical test that highlight spatial costs of nutrient foraging as key to resolving apparent discrepancies between previous studies.

中文翻译：

---

植物自私行为的限制

植物过度生根以保护附近的资源，但避免昂贵的前往邻居的补丁我们习惯于人类的行为，以及其他动物的行为，被描述为自私、好斗或合作。在考虑植物时，这样的词很少出现。然而，植物在争夺资源的过程中也进化出了一系列引人入胜的行为策略，尽管这些策略很难证明和量化。是否以及何时让植物自私地过度生产根系并抢占竞争对手的资源，或通过限制根系生长进行合作，一直是长期争论的主题 (1, 2)。在本期第 1197 页，Cabal 等人。