Branch Out

Plants have developed an array of deadly defences and chemical compounds can turn an innocent looking ornamental into a deadly assassin.

When we hear 'pandemic' we immediately think of COVID-19. But there's a deadly plant disease pandemic called 'myrtle rust' tearing through Australia that arrived long before COVID-19. Discover the cutting-edge science that is our best bet for saving our plant species.

We're in the middle of once-in-a-century pandemic and coming into peak flu-season in the southern hemisphere. Medicine is on our minds and surprisingly, many developed in the last century were derived from naturally occurring molecules found in plants, bacteria, and fungi.

Australia is a no doubt a sunburnt country and the unique landscape shares a long and important relationship with fire. But even the most fire-adapted plants were devastated by the intense summer bushfires. While new growth is emerging and cutting-edge science is saving species - there's still a long road to recovery for the flora that went up in flames.

Plants are the source of so many amazing past and new inventions we need in our lives. Discover how scientists are utilising the waste material from banana plants and cashew nut shells to create more environmentally friendly products.

Even though Australia is new to the wine-making world stage it has produced really iconic drops and inventions such as cask wine and screw caps for bottles. But how did grape vines get here? Discover the art, history and science of wine-making and how it all started down under.

Australian plants have been used by Aboriginal people for tens of thousands of years and now people all over the world are finding a connection to country through cooking with bush foods. Unfortunately, some of these plants are endangered and scientists are collecting and banking seeds to protect their future both on our forks and in the wild.

Climate change is the defining issue of our time and 47% of Australia's vegetation could be impacted by an increase in mean annual temperature by 2070. Three passionate scientists share how they are trying to understand and mitigate the impacts of climate change on flora and our future.

The world's most painful stinging trees call Australia home. Explore this amazing example of plant defence as a range of scientists share their stinging experience and what they're doing to protect the future of these surprisingly important rainforest plants.

Get ready to pick Persoonias from emu poo as Branch Out features an episode from ABC's dedicated nature program - Off Track. Persoonias are an endangered group of plants that need complex processes to germinate. Could the mystery lynchpin to save them be found in an emu's guts? Go Off Track and join Presenter Ann Jones to find out!

Longer space missions and sustaining human life on other planets depends on space horticulture. So grab your spacesuit and get ready to lift off with NASA astronaut Dr Gregory Chamitoff and scientists from the Australian PlantBank and CSIRO to explore the future of plants in space.

The largest herbarium imaging project in the southern hemisphere is underway at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney with over 1 million botanical specimens becoming high-definition digital images. Discover how the images will protect the valuable collection and help researchers around the world make new discoveries to advance science and conservation.

Do you need a brain to sense the world around you, remember or learn? Apparently not. Dive into the marvellous work of evolutionary ecologist Dr Monica Gagliano whose pioneering experiments are proving plants are learning behaviour in ways we never thought possible.

This is your golden ticket into the sweet and serious side of chocolate making. You'll also discover how plant diseases are threatening the future supply of the world's chocolate.

Discover over 60,000 years of culture, plant uses and personal stories from Aboriginal people in Sydney, Australia. You'll also hear from a proud Dharawal elder and his daughter who are keeping their unique Sydney culture alive through storytelling, advocacy, art and research.