Hunting big game – Amateur naturalists Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor identified what are perhaps the tallest trees in the world. Located in the Humboldt Redwoods State Park in California, these trees are over 370 feet high and up to 2,200 years old. Taylor and Atkins, armed with a laser range finder to measure tree height, have catalogued four of the 370+ ft so-called “Helios”, and many redwoods over 350 feet. The Tall Trees Club, which was co-founded by Taylor, reports the details of the largest and tallest trees.

Growing like a weed – The very fast life cycles of many weeds can be an asset when adapting to global climate change. Scientists at UC-Irvine report in PNAS this week that adaptive strategies emerged within five years in a drought-challenged population of wild mustard plants. Genome comparisons of pre- and post-drought exposed seed may help researchers identify mutations resulting in adaptive strategies.

Partners in Crime – The water mold (Phytophthora infestans) that caused the 1845 potato blight in Ireland, and continues to cause trouble for potato farmers, apparently ‘hides out’ in the nightshade plant. (The nightshade and potato belong to the same family – Solanaceae.) The trouble: nightshade is a common weed in potato fields, providing an ever-ready escape for the irksome mold.