Can plants produce heat?
Answer:
Some plants in the family Araceae actually heat their flowers! A local example would be skunk cabbage, named for the aroma of it's crushed leaves. A scientist investigating this matter measured the temperature of a skunk cabbage's flower to be 104° F when the air temperature was only 68° F.
It is unknown exactly how the plants generate this heat, but possible reasons are:
To vaporize an odor that would attract pollinating insects.
To warm the pollinating insects, helping the insect do its job.
To provide protection against cold weather.
Locally, skunk cabbage is valued by beekeepers as it is the first source of pollen in the spring. The bees need this pollen as food for their young larvae.
Skunk cabbage is a wetland indicator plant, but can exist on drier land for up to ten years after a wetland has receded.
Reference:
Seymour, R.S. 1997. Plants that warm themselves. Scientific American 76: 104-109
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