A common houseplant hides a splendid geometric pattern.
This design, called a Voronoi diagram, appears on the leaves of the Chinese money plant. The layout may arise as waves of a plant hormone spread across a leaf during its development. A similar process may shape the vein patterns in leaves of other plants, too.
Researchers shared these findings May 12 in Nature Communications.
This is a “beautiful” showcase of how plant veins develop to move water across leaves most efficiently, says Lawren Sack. He did not take part in the research. But he does study plant biology at the University of California, Los Angeles. Veins of leaves “have so much to tell us” about how to get resources where they need to go, he says.
Lurking in leaves
Leaves of the Chinese money plant (Pilea peperomioides) are speckled with pores. Called hydathodes, these pores release water. Each one is fenced in by veins t...
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