"Is it true your team will be working on Arabidopsis genetics? Arabidopsis is a good 'model plant,' because it is of a manageable size, flowers quickly, and has a tiny genome. Some scientists criticize using Arabidopsis because it doesn't represent other plants very well (compare it to a corn cob or a houseplant!). On the other hand, plant researchers that study Arabidopsis have opened treasure trove of plant knowledge. My view is that Arabidopsis is like a Wikipedia page: it is short, highly informative when you want the basics fast, but occasionally contains misleading information."