Advances in the Effects of Wind on Plants

Wind is a important factor. It can strongly affect development, growth and reproduction of terrestrial plants. The plant in wind environment can adapt to wind by special mechanism to decrease damage. This paper reviews the effects of wind on plant in phenotype, anatomy and root archetecture. Some plant species show a resistance strategy, but other species show an avoidance strategy. After the analysis of the restriction of current research in this area, the authors suggest that studies in the area should be extended to taking the whole plant as an integrated system rather than focusing on specific tissue level. Furthermore to understand the general mechanism across species, it is required to study different species from different environmental conditions. Advances in bioinformatics, molecular and physiological research will facilitate cross disciplinary studies to understand the complicated responses of plants to wind.