Scientists at EPFL’s Laboratory for Processing of Advanced Composites (LPAC) and the University of Freiburg’s Botanical Garden have studied how the flax plant heals itself after it has been wounded. As part of a cross-disciplinary EU research project, they measured changes in the plant’s mechanical properties, like stiffness and damping, and examined the plant’s self-repair mechanisms. Because natural fibers are being increasingly used to make composite materials, understanding how such mechanisms work can help scientists develop self-healing materials with better performance, drawing on methods inspired by nature.