What's the secret of that fresh-cut grass smell?A pleasant aroma with a traumatic origin.

From the show

Science Around You

That familiar scent of a freshly mown lawn isn't what you think. It's a complex chemical signal released by grass under duress, a biological response to being wounded. These compounds, known as green leaf volatiles, are the plant's version of a scream. They serve to heal the cut, prevent infection, and warn neighboring plants of danger. What we perceive as a clean summer smell is actually a plant's cry for help.