# Optimizing fitness: plastic flowering time in variable environments

## TL;DR

This review explores how plants adjust their flowering time in response to environmental stresses and how this affects crop yield and resilience.

## Contribution

The paper proposes combining multi-omics data, network modeling, and AI to breed stress-tolerant crops with stable productivity.

## Key findings

- Abiotic and biotic stresses influence flowering time through microRNAs, transcription factors, and hormonal crosstalk.
- Phytohormones like ABA and GA play central roles in stress adaptation and floral transition.
- Integrating advanced data analysis methods can improve breeding for stress resilience in crops.

## Abstract

Flowering time is a critical determinant of crop yield and adaptability, regulated by the integration of environmental cues, phytohormones, and genetic networks. Abiotic stresses such as drought, waterlogging, salinity, and high temperature, together with biotic stresses including pathogens, viruses, and herbivores, profoundly reshape flowering phenology through microRNAs, transcription factors, epigenetic modifications, and hormonal crosstalk. Phytohormones, especially ABA and GA, act as regulatory hubs coordinating stress adaptation and floral transition, though their effects vary across species and conditions. This review synthesizes recent advances in stress-mediated flowering regulation and emphasizes the challenges of balancing stress tolerance with yield stability. We propose that integrating multi-omics data, regulatory network modeling, and artificial intelligence will accelerate the breeding of stress-resilient cultivars with stable productivity.