Forty-five years of plant silicon and phytolith research. A personal review

Abstract This paper will consider the major trends in plant silicon (Si) and phytolith (plant silica body) research between 1980 and 2026. I will intersperse my own personal research history within this story. There are two sub-fields in this research area: plant Si research; and phytolith research. I will mainly look at plant Si research but will highlight a few of the major advances in phytolith research and investigate the overlap between the two sub-fields. The first book to be published on the topic was by Piperno in 1988, and there are now 19. The first international conference in the area was the 1st International Meeting on Phytolith Research (IMPR), held in Madrid, Spain in 1996. Three years later, the 1st International Conference on Silicon in Agriculture (ICSA) was held in Florida, USA. The number of publications in the area has markedly increased, and there are now (February 2026) 19 that were published between 1980 and 2026 that have over 1,000 citations. In the last 15 years we have seen many special issues of journals focussing on plant silicon (Si) and phytolith research. I located 36 people who have been researching in the area for 30 years or more, but there are many others that have made highly significant contributions. Identifying the researchers who will be likely to make a major impact in the future is a difficult task, but I highlighted the work of the various prize-winners at the IMPR in Barcelona and the ICSA in Belgrade, both held in 2025. Finally, I suggested topics for future research.