THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF PLANTS: CHEMICAL SIGNALING AND ECOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS

Abstract

Plants communicate extensively through a diverse suite of chemical signals—volatile organic compounds (VOCs), root exudates, allelochemicals, soluble phytohormones, and compounds shuttled via fungal networks. These signals mediate plant–plant, plant–microbe, and plant–animal interactions and shape community composition, trophic relationships, and ecosystem function. This review synthesizes mechanistic knowledge of plant chemical signaling, surveys major experimental approaches, highlights canonical case studies (VOCs in herbivore defense; root exudates shaping the rhizosphere; common mycorrhizal networks), and discusses ecological and applied implications for agriculture, restoration, and climate change resilience. We identify major knowledge gaps—signal perception mechanisms at the molecular level, context-dependence in natural communities, and atmospheric/soil dynamics of cues—and propose research priorities that would accelerate translation of plant chemical ecology to sustainable agro ecosystems