Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law

by Mary Roach

Kurtis says he’s heard that drought spurs some plants to produce an excess of reproductive material, or “mast”—fruit, seeds, berries, acorns—and then less of it the following year. “They’re trying to spread their seed, thinking that they’re about to die off. And then when a wet year comes, they’re more concerned about growing.” I don’t know if that’s what has happened here, but I like this worldview of trees that worry and prioritize and plan for their demise.