The ‘wood wide web’ theory charmed us all – but now it’s the subject of a bitter fight among scientists

‘The speed at which the idea had spread had outpaced the science underpinning it.’ Parasol mushrooms in Spain. Photograph: Nature Picture Library/Alamy

You have probably heard the theory, that the health of forests depends on common mycorrhizal networks. Trees send resources to their neighbours through strands of hyphae, which act as an underground arboreal postal service, connecting root systems within the soil. Mature trees preferentially provide their offspring with resources, ensuring the survival of their own.

Not ringing any bells? Try switching “common mycorrhizal network” with “wood wide web”, the more familiar term that has described this phenomenon in hundreds of more mainstream places: novels, magazines, films and television series. The wood wide web is one of those rare things – a scientific theory that has captured the popular imagination.