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Forest canopies act as carbon sinks, reducing the increase of atmospheric CO 2 caused by human activity. The destruction of forest canopies would lead to the release of carbon dioxide, resulting in an increased concentration of atmospheric CO 2. This would then contribute to the greenhouse effect, thereby causing the planet to become warmer. [14]
Proportion and distribution of global forest area by climatic domain, 2020 [1] A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of trees. [2] Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function.
A forest stand is a contiguous community of trees sufficiently uniform in composition, structure, age, size, class, distribution, spatial arrangement, condition, or location on a site of uniform quality to distinguish it from adjacent communities. [1] A forest is a "collection of stands" also utilizing the practices of forestry. [2]
In addition, an important proportion of a forest ecosystem's biomass is often underground, where soil structure, water quality and quantity, and levels of various soil nutrients can vary greatly. [10] Thus, forests are often highly heterogeneous environments compared to other terrestrial plant communities. This heterogeneity in turn can enable ...
The forest canopy reduces solar radiation, so the ground does not heat up or cool down as rapidly as open ground. Consequently, the understory dries out more slowly than more exposed areas do. The greater humidity encourages epiphytes such as ferns and mosses, and allows fungi and other decomposers to flourish.
Besides the superposition of different plants growing on the same soil, there is a lateral impact of the higher layers on adjacent plant communities, for example, at the edges of forests and bushes. This particular vegetation structure results in the growth of certain vegetation types such as forest mantle and margin communities. [citation needed]
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Class 4. Psychrophytes (of formations on cold soil). Class 5. Halophytes (of formations on saline soil). C. The soil is physically dry, and its slight power of retaining water determines the vegetation, the climate being of secondary import; the formations are therefore likewise xerophilous: Class 6. Lithophytes (of formations on rocks). Class 7.