Guttation is a very common natural phenomenon in the plant kingdom. Many plant species reportedly engage in guttation, such as rice, wheat, barley, maize, tomato, potatoes, tobacco
[1][2][3][4][5]. Guttation refers to the process of liquid seeping from the tips, edges, and adaxial and abaxial surfaces of the undamaged leaves of plant species in the form of droplets
[6]. This usually occurs during the early morning or late hours of the day and is a complex phenomenon affected by many internal and external factors. Some factors affecting guttation include a plant’s nutritional condition, its water balance and root activity, local soil moisture, air temperature and humidity, and wind speed
[7]. It is generally thought that the continual absorption of water by the root system causes water to accumulate in roots, which creates hydrostatic pressure; this pressure can move water upward to the leaves of the plant via the xylem duct network in the stem, forcing some water to exit through hydathodes located at surfaces of leaves to form the characteristic drops of guttation
[7]. Guttation plays an important role in the transport of nutrients, water, proteins, enzymes, hormones, and metabolites as a plant develops and grows in size
[6]. The study showed that plant guttation can provide a continuous non-destructive system for producing recombinant proteins, greatly increasing yield, eliminating extraction, and simplifying downstream processing
[8]. The guttation status of plants can be used as a rapid screening technology for rice germplasm resources
[9]. However, we do not yet fully understand the internal linkage between the guttation phenomenon and the growth dynamics of plants.
Moso bamboo (
Phyllostachys edulis) is the most important bamboo species in China because of its paramount ecological, economic, and cultural value among all bamboo types. Within the last decade, considerable research has investigated the mechanism underpinning the rapid growth of bamboo shoots, including the morphological anatomy aspects, physiological responses, and molecular regulation
[10][11][12][13]. Compared with trees, bamboo is a grass that has a unique vascular system that is likely linked to its special growth and development characteristics
[13]. The shoot stage has an astounding growth rate, capable of reaching a maximum daily growth of 1 m
[10]. Water dynamics figure prominently in the facilitation of the rapid growth of bamboo shoots, and guttation is a direct indicator of a plant’s water status. However, the relationship between bamboo’s guttation and its shoots’ rapid growth is understudied, and therefore this phenomenon and its implications remain unclear.