Cover stories (112:12): Selection favours high spread & asymmetry of flower opening dates within plant individuals

Johan Ehrlén tell us the story behind the cover image for our December issue: This photo, taken in southern Sweden early May, shows inflorescences of Lathyrus vernus. Flowers at the bottom of the inflorescences have already started to wilt and changed colour from purple to light blue, while the uppermost flowers have just opened. This…

Cover stories (112:10): Using machine learning to link climate, phylogeny & leaf area

The cover image for our October issue shows the first part of an automated process to extract leaf area from herbarium images. Here the model’s predictions of leaves are on the pressed plant specimen of Corymbia gilbertensis. The image relates to the Editor’s Choice article ‘Using machine learning to link climate, phylogeny and leaf area in eucalypts through…

Cover stories (111:06): Always look deeper

The cover image for our June issue shows a ‘deeper look’ into species-rich mountain grassland in the Krkonoše Mountains, Czech Republic. This image relates to the article ‘Plant–soil feedbacks in a diverse grassland: Soil remembers, but not too much‘, by Eliška Kuťáková et al. Here, Eliška tells us the story behind the image: Being a plant ecologist,…

Cover stories (111:04): The shape of autumn

The cover image for our April issue shows dried, freshly senesced leaves and foliated twigs of different gymnosperm and angiosperm species, demonstrating the size and shape of leaf litter particles. This image relates to the article ‘Experimental evidence that leaf litter decomposability and flammability are decoupled across gymnosperm species‘ by Shudong Zhang et al. Here, Shudong tells us…

Cover stories (111:03): The mysterious process of Mistletoe germination

The cover image for our March issue shows twin seedlings of mistletoe (Viscum album) established on a branch of apple (Malus domestica), the parasite’s most frequent British host. This image relates to the Biological Flora of Britain and Ireland: Viscum album, by Peter Thomas et al. Here, co-author Jonathan Briggs tells us the story behind the image: The germination…

Cover stories (111:02): Yellow trout lily – a journey from ground to museum to research journal

The cover image for our February issue shows a digitized herbarium specimen of flowering yellow trout lily plants (Erythronium americanum). This image relates to the article, Warmer temperatures are linked to widespread phenological mismatch among native and non-native forest plants, by Tara Miller et al., which is part of a special feature on Leveraging natural history collections to understand…

Cover stories (110:12): European Hazel, Corylus avellana

The cover image for our December issue shows germination day one of European Hazel, Corylus avellana. The yellow radicle breaks through the nut wall and elongates into the substrate over the following fortnight. This image relates to the article, Biological Flora of Britain and Ireland: Corylus avellana, by Damien Hicks. Here, Damien tells us the story behind the image: The…