Page 48 - BCI Bonsai & Stone Appreciation Q1 2025

How Do Plant Cells
Communicate
in Response to Water?
By Luis Carlos Rodriguez Zapata and Enrique Castaño, Mexico
46 the ability to carry out photosynthesis, taking
In general, plants are sessile organisms with
advantage of the sun’s energy to break the water
molecule and fix carbon dioxide into sugars.
This process is the source of most of the organic
materials produced and the chemical energy required
to carry out the reactions needed to sustain life. Since
it is an essential basic process, we thought it would be
good to understand more in-depth how plant cells
respond to water signaling. We all know that watering
our trees is one of the most complicated tasks that we
tend to do empirically. Many of us have horror stories
of traveling and asking others to water our trees, only
| BCI | January/February/March 2025
to find that the apparently simple task was beyond their
capacity to execute. In addition, excessive watering
can cause root rot, which is one of the most common
causes of death in trees. Because bonsai are planted in
such small pots, they also dry out easily. Depending
on the species, its metabolic requirements (how fast
it is growing), the local environment (temperature,
humidity, wind), the amount and type of substrate, as
well as the type of container (material and shape) will
influence the amount of water needed for your tree.
The properties of water are sometimes forgotten,
and it’s good to review a few due to their relevance in
tree development and care. Water is a molecule made