FOREST PLANTS: 5 TYPES AND CHARACTERISTICS - BIOLOGY - 2025

The forest plants cover a range of forest whose common characteristic is that the vast majority of these trees were established on the site for planting.

While a geometrically shaped monoculture forest of non-native species is an artificial plantation, there are many ancient and famous forests in Europe that are nonetheless natural.

Examples include the New Forest in Great Britain, parts of the Black Forest in Germany, parts of the Foret de Compiegne in France, and most of the forest in Denmark.

Broadly speaking, there is no internationally agreed definition of forest plantations, although the term "planted forest" is now used to encompass forest types where the forest origin is known to be planting. Between countries there are different degrees of management and different objectives for planted forests.

However, planted forests that still possess characteristics of uniformity, shape, and often intensity of management that are easily distinguished from artificial plantations are considered forest plantations.

The types of forest plants

Bromeliads

The most common epiphytes are bromeliads. Bromeliads are flowering plants whose long leaves are arranged in a rosette that adhere to the host tree by wrapping their roots around its branches.

Its leaves channel the water into a central "reservoir". The reservoir of a bromeliad is a habitat in itself and as an important fact the water is not only used by the plant, but also by many animals of the tropical forest.

Birds and mammals drink from the reservoir of this plant. Also, many tadpoles grow there, the insects laying their eggs.

Heliconias or birds of paradise

Heliconias are flowering plants that grow in the tropical forests of the Americas. Specifically in the forest, and its brightly colored flowers attract hummingbirds, which pollinate the plant.

They are popular all over the world and are used as ornamental plants. They are also known as "lobster claws" due to the shape of the flowers.

Bougainvillea or trinitaria

It is a colorful plant from the rainforest, native to South America. They are grown as ornamental plants in other areas. Bougainvilleas are well known for their beautiful flowers that grow around the actual flower.

Amazon water lily

The Amazon water lily is an aquatic plant that grows in the lakes and rivers of the South American rainforests. Its huge leaves can be up to 3 meters in diameter.

It has rows of sharp thorns on the underside of its leaves and this deters rainforest animals like manatees from eating them.

Orchids

There are many types of forest orchids and these are often epiphytes. Some have specially adapted roots that allow them to capture water and nutrients from the air. Others, however, have roots that extend over the branch of the host tree.

One of the best known species of this plant is the vanilla orchid, used for the first time as a flavoring by the Aztecs. Today, the word "vanilla" is generally used to describe a flavor, rather than the plant it came from.

Vanilla orchids grow by climbing on top of other trees and are pollinated by hummingbirds and melipon bees. These grow in Central and South America.

On the other hand, the most recognizable plants in a forest are its trees, although there are many other plants that thrive in the forest biome such as shrubs, wildflowers, ferns, and mosses can all be found on the shady forest floor.

The types of forest trees are

Among the trees of forest plantations we find timber and non-timber. As for the first type, there are:

Mahogany

The mahogany tree has characteristics that distinguish it from other tropical hardwood trees. It has a long, clean trunk, sometimes stretching 18 to 24 meters in height.

Its gray-brown bark is quite smooth and grows in ridges or large individual scales. In turn, the leaf of the mahogany tree is composite, similar to that of the hickory.

The flower is very small, yellowish-red, and tulip-shaped. The seed grows vertically inside a large woody capsule. Interestingly, these seeds are the same golden brown color as that of aged mahogany.

Mahogany grows in quite specific climatic zones, which include the West Indies, particularly Cuba, Santo Domingo, and Jamaica, with small amounts of the same varieties in the extreme south of Florida.

In the American continent, mahogany extends from southern Mexico, northern Guatemala, and Honduras, through Central America to northern Colombia and Venezuela. African mahogany is produced in the Ivory Coast, the Gold Coast and in Nigeria and is found in West Africa and certain parts of East Africa.

Oak

Oak trees are hardy trees with very long lives, they can live up to 200 years or even more. One of the oldest oak trees on record was in Talbot County, Maryland and is believed to be about 400 years old.

Mature trees can absorb nearly 50 gallons of water on a daily basis through their root systems and produce acorns from age 20 onwards. However, oak trees produce more than 2,000 acorns each year, but only one in 10,000 acorns will make it into oak.

These types of trees live in the Northern Hemisphere and can survive in various forests, including those in temperate, Mediterranean and tropical climates. Oak trees are prone to fungal diseases that can induce rotting of the inner part of the plant.

Its wood is very strong and hard and is used in the manufacture of ships, furniture, floors and is also used in the manufacture of barrels for the storage of vine, whiskey, brandy and other spirits. Also, it adds a special aroma to these drinks.

Cedar

Cedar is an evergreen tree that belongs to the pine family (the term "cedar" is sometimes used to describe more than 30 species of plants that belong to three different families: Pinaceae, Cupressaceae, and Meliaceae).

Cedar is native to the Himalayas and the Mediterranean region, but can be found in temperate climates throughout the world. Cedar is cultivated by people for its ornamental morphology and fragrant, durable and resistant wood that has application in the construction and furniture industry.

This tree has a dark gray or brown bark and produces two types of shoots: long and short. The cedar crown is usually pyramidal in shape and its leaves are covered with a thick layer of white wax that prevents water loss.

The color of the leaves depends on the thickness of the wax and as a curiosity this tree does not produce flowers. Cedar wood was widely used in the past to make boxes, boats, tools, and weapons.

The fragrant oil extracted from the heart of the cedar was used during the mummification process in ancient Egypt and as a highlight this tree can survive for more than 300 years.

On the other hand, as regards non-timber trees, the following types can be mentioned:

Rubber tree

This tree produces a milky-colored latex sap that can be recovered from the plant once it matures at an age of approximately 6 years. They are native to the rainforest region of South America, as well as the tropical forests of Sumatra, Himalayas, India, Nepal, and Java.

The tree can reach 30 meters in height and the leaves of the gum tree are glossy, oval in shape and dark green. They can measure 35 centimeters long and up to 15.24 centimeters wide.

This type grows quickly, and like most rainforest trees, it can reach full size in as little as 13 years. The tree grows best in sunlight and although it is better suited to the hot, humid climate of the rainforest, it can survive extremely dry conditions.

Among other forest resources, rubber is obtained from the trunks of trees and is used for all types of rubber products. As a curiosity, the seeds are a source of oil for the manufacture of soaps.

However, in the last 50 years, these forest plantations have not always been established on land devoid of tree cover, at least in the last 50 years.

By 2050, the total area of ​​plantations is expected to exceed 200 million hectares, since due to their productivity, generally higher than in natural forests, forest plants become the main source of wood products at the level. world.

References

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