Abstract: Low temperature damage is one of the main stress factors affecting crop distribution, yield and quality, and research in plant cold resistance mechanism is an active and fast developing field. Here, research on plant cold resistance mechanism was reviewed from four aspects:the physiological and biochemical basis of plant cold resistance, the perception of low temperature signal, the transmission of low temperature signal in plants, and the expression regulation of plant cold responsive genes. Additionally, the prospects of the application of research on plant cold resistance inagricultural production was discussed.