In this Perspective, Mascher et al. look back on 30 years of genetic and genomic research in cereal crops. Genome sequences have revealed common evolutionary patterns as well as differences between species and will support applications in breeding.

BZR/BES transcription factors are widely recognized as mediators of brassinosteroid (BR)-responsive gene expression in seed plants, but details of how they act in species that lack BR perception are unclear. A study now uncovers an ancient mission of a BZR/BES transcription factor in sexual organ development in the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha.

Compartmentalization of specialized compounds in glandular trichomes is essential for plant protection against stresses and attraction of pollinators. This compartmentalization is achieved by the establishment of a lignin-based apoplastic barrier named ‘neck strip’, which is present in trichomes of diverse plant species.

The functions of a small family of non-secreted peptides, originally identified as critical communicators of the plant’s iron status, have expanded. The involvement of these effectors in disparate signalling cascades underlines the pivotal role peptides have in responses to the environment.

In this Review, Bergis-Ser and colleagues discuss how chromatin dynamics and nucleic acid metabolism impinge on genome integrity, both as sources of spontaneous lesions and as key contributors to the DNA damage response in plants.

Drought is a serious threat to global food security. In upstream research, crop drought-tolerant traits are often studied under extreme drought conditions, which can seem irrelevant in the eyes of breeders.

A triplet repeat expansion in Arabidopsis induces gene silencing that results in a severe growth defect. We show that an interplay between a SUMO protease and histone readers of active and inactive marks is required for this gene silencing, which highlights the importance of post-translational modifiers in chromatin remodelling.

In this Perspective, Vincent Merckx and colleagues discuss an important but overlooked aspect of mycorrhizal interactions, mycoheterotrophy, in the context of recent arguments about the importance of these interactions to forest functioning.

Repeat expansions can induce gene silencing exemplified by growth defects in plants to genetic diseases in humans. This paper shows key roles for post-translational modifiers, histone readers and the polycomb repressive complex in this gene silencing.

Plant species diversity declines from tropical to temperate latitudes. Local neighbourhood interactions among species that favour heterospecifics over conspecifics may have a role in shaping this latitudinal diversity gradient, but perhaps not as traditionally thought.

In global drylands, soils tend to be more fertile beneath tree, shrub and grass islands. Soil fertility was greater beneath taller and wider plants but was unaffected by either grazing pressure or the type of herbivore.