This is where scientists have discovered structures that act a bit like brains.

This is where a tree decides how much to drink , which neighbor it will supply with sugar solution via the tree’s underground network, and which fungi to pair up with.

Tree parents pass the distillation of their life experience to their offspring through epigenetic markers. These are methyl molecules that attach to genes like bookmarks and are passed down to the next generation when seeds are formed. The seedlings then “know” right away how to deal with the soil where they are growing, the amount of rain that falls, and the current summer temperatures.