Self Watering Rhubarb

Researchers have managed to make out the "self-irrigating" mechanism of the desert rhubarb, which enables it to harvest 16 times the amount of water than otherwise expected for a plant in the desert based on the quantities of rain. This is the first example of a self-irrigating desert plant, the scientists say.

The desert rhubarb grows in the mountains of Israel's Negev desert, where average precipitation is particularly low (75 mm per year). Unlike most of the other desert plant species, which have small leaves so as to minimize moisture loss, this plant is unique in that its leaves are particularly large; each plant's rosette of one to four leaves reaches a total diameter of up to one meter. Prof. Simcha Lev-Yadun, Prof. Gidi Ne'eman and Prof. Gadi Katzir from the Department of Science Education-Biology at the University of Haifa-Oranim came across this unique plant growing in the desert while studying the field area with students and noticed that its leaves are unusually large and covered with a waxy cuticle. They observed an exceptionally ridged structure on each leaf, forming a leaf structure that resembles the habitat's mountainous topography.

The scientists explained that these deep and wide depressions in the leaves create a "channeling" mountain-like system by which the rain water is channeled toward the ground surrounding the plant's deep root. Other desert plants simply suffice with the rain water that penetrates the ground in its immediate surroundings.The findings have shown that the natural selection process has resulted in the evolution of this plant's extremely large leaves, which improved its ability to survive in the arid climate of the desert. "We know of no other plant in the deserts of the world that functions in this manner," the researchers concluded.