E-Mail IMAGE: Frost on Arabidopsis thaliana - new discovery may help us grow crops in fluctuating climate view more Credit: John Innes Centre The first frost of autumn may be grim for gardeners but the latest evidence reveals it is a profound event in the life of plants. The discovery may affect how we grow crops in a fluctuating climate and help us better understand molecular mechanisms in animals and humans. Much of our understanding of how plants register temperature at a molecular level has been gained from the study of vernalization - the exposure to an extended period of cold as a preparation for flowering in spring.