The transition to flowering marks the initiation of reproductive competence in plants.After the floral transition,the shoot apical meristem (SAM) ceases to produce leaf primordia and starts to generate floral primordia,the reproductive organs of plants.To maximize reproductive success,the timing of this transition needs to be precisely aligned with the most favorable environmental conditions (Blackman,2017).Day length and cold temperature variations usually act as predictable seasonal signals to initiate flowering.However,due to the complexity of natural conditions,plants must gage a much wider array of information before committing to reproductive development.A striking example of this developmental plasticity is the drought escape (DE) response,where drought conditions experienced during vegetative growth cause an accelerated flowering time compared with optimal watering conditions (Figure 1A).Among the strategies to cope with drought stress,DE may provide ephemeral plants like Arabidopsis with a simple "exit strategy" to anticipate seed set before drought conditions become incompatible with their survival.