Chemical defense
Growth is typically negatively correlated with chemical defense
allocation because of the cost of secondary metabolite production
(Herms & Mattson 1992).
Plants produce a wide variety of defense chemicals that can inhibit
pathogens (Bednarek &
Osbourn 2009). For example, the invader Solidago canadensis can
suppress soil pathogens via allelochemicals including flavones,
phenolics, and saponins
(Zhang et al.2009, 2010). While some species are known to produce relatively high
concentrations of these compounds, comparisons between invaders with
high and low production of these compounds is required to understand
cost-benefit relative to other defense traits.