Desert Plants
The desert is very dry and often hot.
Annual rainfall averages less than 10 inches per year, and that rain often comes
all at the same time. The rest of the year is very dry.
There is a lot of direct sunlight shining on the plants.
The soil is often sandy or rocky and unable to hold much water. Winds are
often strong, and dry out plants.
Some plants, called succulents, store water in their stems or leaves
Long root systems spread out wide or go deep into the ground to absorb water
Leaves with hair help shade the plant, reducing water loss. Other plants have
leaves that turn throughout the day to expose a minimum surface area to the
heat.
Spines to discourage animals from eating plants for water
Waxy coating on stems and leaves help reduce water loss
Slower growing requires less energy. The plants don't have to make as much
food and therefore do not lose as much water.
Tundra Plants
The tundra is cold year-round—it has short cool summers and long, severe
winters.
The tundra has a permanently frozen sub layer of soil called permafrost.
Drainage is poor due to the permafrost and because of the cold, evaporation is
slow.
It has long days during the growing season, sometimes with 24 hours of
daylight, and long nights during the winter.
There is little diversity of species. Plant life is dominated by mosses, grasses,
and sedges.
Tundra
Tundra plants are small (usually less than 12 inches tall) and low-growing due to
lack of nutrients, because being close to the ground helps keep the plants from
freezing, and because the roots cannot penetrate the permafrost.
Plants are dark in colour—some are even red—this helps them absorb solar heat.
Some plants are covered with hair which helps keep them warm.
Some plants grow in clumps to protect one another from the wind and cold.
Some plants have dish-like flowers that follow the sun, focusing more solar heat
on the centre of the flower, helping the plant stay warm.
Temperature Deciduous Forest Plants
The Temperate Deciduous Forest
There are four distinct seasons in the temperate deciduous forest: spring,
summer, autumn, and winter.
The temperature varies from hot in the summer to below freezing in the
winter.
Rain is plentiful, about 30 to 50 inches per year.
The temperate deciduous forest is made up of layers of plants; the number of
layers depends upon factors such as climate, soil, and the age of the forest
Wildflowers grow on forest floor early in the spring before trees leaf-out and
shade the forest floor
Many trees are deciduous (they drop their leaves in the autumn, and grow new
ones in spring).
Most deciduous trees have thin, broad, light-weight leaves that can capture a lot
of sunlight to make a lot of food for the tree in warm weather; when the
weather gets cooler, the broad leaves cause too much water loss and can be
weighed down by too much snow, so the tree drops its leaves. New ones will
grow in the spring.
Trees have thick bark to protect against cold winters
Aquatic Plants
Underwater leaves and stems are flexible to move with water currents
Some plants have air spaces in their stems to help hold the plant up in the
water
Submerged plants lack strong water transport system (in stems); instead
water, nutrients, and dissolved gases are absorbed through the leaves
directly from the water.
Roots and root hairs reduced or absent; roots only needed for anchorage,
not for absorption of nutrients and water
Some plants have leaves that float atop the water, exposing themselves
to the sunlight
In floating plants chlorophyll is restricted to upper surface of leaves
(part that the sunlight will hit) and the upper surface is waxy to repel
water
Some plants produce seeds that can float
Grassland (prairie) Plants
The Temperate Grasslands
The temperate grasslands, also called prairie, feature hot summers and cold
winters.
Rainfall is uncertain and drought is common.
The temperate grasslands usually receive about 10 to 30 inches of precipitation
per year.
The soil is extremely rich in organic material due to the fact that the above-
ground portions of grasses die off annually, enriching the soil. Temperate
Grassland (Prairie) Plant Adaptations
During a fire, while above-ground portions of grasses may perish, the root
portions survive to sprout again
Some prairie trees have thick bark to resist fire
Prairie shrubs readily resprout after fire
Roots of prairie grasses extend deep into the ground to absorb as much
moisture as they can
Extensive root systems prevent grazing animals from pulling roots out of the
ground
Prairie grasses have narrow leaves which lose less water than broad leaves
Grasses grow from near their base, not from tip, thus are not permanently
damaged from grazing animals or fire
Many grasses take advantage of exposed, windy conditions and are wind
pollinated
Soft stems enable prairie grasses to bend in the wind
