Fig. 1

Priming modifies responses to a triggering stress cue. A naϊve plant may be primed by exposure either to stress or to other priming cues such as volatiles. Upon exposure to a triggering stress cue, the response pattern differs markedly in primed and naïve plants. The primed plant may respond to the triggering stress cue faster/earlier or more strongly than a naïve plant. It may also respond in a sensitized fashion so that the response is triggered at a lower threshold. The primed plant may further change its response pattern to regulate a network of genes that differs from that involved in a naïve plant. None of these responses are exclusive and combinations thereof probably occur