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Coniferous forests are so named due to the numerous coniferous plants that grow in them. The range of coniferous forests can be typically found in the regions of North America, Scandinavia, and Asia. Siberia and Russia also has a number of coniferous forests between them. There are only a few coniferous forests plants due to the severe climactic conditions in their habitat.
Majority of coniferous forest plants are trees called collectively as evergreens. Instead of leaves they have needles. Also, cones bear the seeds of coniferous trees. Hemlock, spruce, fire and pine are examples of coniferous trees. On the other hand, the subcategories of these trees include white spruce, balsam fir, redwood, Douglas fir, white pine, Jeffrey pine, cypresses, cedars, sugar pine, ponderosa pine, and black spruce.
One highly popular evergreen species is the sequoia tree, which is known and revered for its gigantic size. Its lifespan is known to extend beyond 3,000 years and is one of the longest living trees in the world. There are several reasons as to why this tree is able to live long. One is that it is highly resistant to disease and pest infestation. Another is due to its exceptionally thick bark which is able to sufficiently protect the tree from fire.
Other coniferous forest plants are flowers and shrubs, which are not as plentiful as evergreens. There are a number of Northwestern coniferous forest plants that belong to this plant category. One example is the Saskatoon berry, which is also called western serviceberry. This is a very useful shrub that produces fruits that are considered a delicacy by the native people of the Pacific Northwest. These indigenous groups are also known to fashion arrows, drying racks, and digging sticks out of the stems of this shrub.
Ferns are another group of coniferous forest plants. These prehistoric plants are estimated by experts to have been around the earth for 300 million years. Instead of seeds, ferns have spores. Incredibly, these coniferous forest plants are able to produce billions of pores every growing period, but only a few are able to survive and become ferns.
There are currently a number of things that pose a threat to the viability of coniferous forests. One is acid rain, which damages soil structure, making forest grounds uninhabitable for many coniferous forest plants. Coniferous forests in Russia and Asia in particular, records one of the highest numbers of acid rain incidents in the world.
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Author Bio Box: Patricia Wainwright
Get all the facts about trees and shrubs and gardening information at GreenThumbArticles.com!
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