Abiotic Stresses
Plants are subject to the elements of nature and whether rain or shine, plants have to adapt to survive.
Drought stress restricts the water availability to plants.
Heat and Drought
In heat waves or periods of drought, plants have to conserve water to prevent drying out. Insufficient water will prevent plants producing energy (via photosynthesis), hindering their growth or eventually killing them.
Flooding
Heavy rainfall or sea level rise can cause crops to be subjected to long periods of stagnant flooding or to become submerged. When fully covered in water, plants can effectively ‘drown’ if their tissues are not able to receive oxygen.
Waterlogged plants can rapidly run out of energy reserves by attempting to grow above the water.
Salinity Stress
When a plant faces high concentrations of salt, most commonly in the soil, it can rapidly become dehydrated. This occurs by the decreased capacity of its roots to absorb water and an increased loss of water from its leaves.
Salt is also directly toxic as it affects the ion balance necessary for cell viability. Without sufficient water, plants cannot carry out photosynthesis or retain internal water pressure to grow.
Cold Stress
Extreme cold can be as life-threatening to plants as extreme heat. Chilling stress (0˙-15˙C) can limit plant growth by reducing the rigidity of cell walls and disrupting the function of proteins. When plant cells freeze (<0˙C), the water inside them expands, causing the cell to burst and die.
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As for biotic stresses from pests and diseases, plants may have some level of tolerance to the weather. However, as climate change is causing greater extremities in weather events, crop losses due to abiotic stresses are becoming more common.
Extra Resources
Francini and Sebastini, 2019, 'Abiotic Stress Effects on Performance of Horticultural Crops', Horticulturae, MDPI: 5, 67; doi:10.3390/horticulturae5040067
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He et al., 2018 'Abiotic Stresses: General Defenses of Land Plants and Chances for Engineering Multistress Tolerance 'Front. Plant Sci., https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2018.01771
