There are 12 large biodiversity countries in the world, and our country, India, is one of them. India has a wide variety of flora and fauna. India ranks 10th in the world with about 47,000 plant species and 4th in Asia in terms of plant diversity. There are many non-flowering plants in India such as ferns, algae and fungi. There are a total of 80,000 species of animals and a variety of fish in India’s freshwater and marine life.
Natural Vegetation
Plants that are not grown by humans are called natural plants. It does not need human help and receives what its needs from natural environment.
Natural vegetation is a group of plants that grow naturally without human assistance. They remained untouched for a long time. We call it a virgin plant. Therefore, cultivated crops, fruits and orchards are part of plants, but not natural plants. Now we will look at some factors that affect plants in our country.
Benefits of Natural Vegetation
- Helps in maintaining water cycle .
- Keeps air clean by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and adding oxygen.
- Provides wood and tones of very high commercial and medical value.
- It also prevents soil erosion and prevents flooding.
- Reduces air pollutants like ozone that burn lung tissue.
- Reduces storm runoff and downstream flood damage.
Factors Affecting Natural Vegetation
- Land: Natural vegetation depends directly or indirectly on the characteristics of the land. For example, vegetation in hilly areas differs from vegetation in plateaus and plains. Fertile soils are commonly used for agriculture, and pastures and forests grow on undulating and uneven terrain, providing habitat for a variety of fauna.
- Soil: Soil factors also vary from place to place. This is because the type of soil provides the basis for a variety of plant types. Different soil types support different types of plants. Cacti and prickly shrubs thrive on the sandy soils of the desert, while mangroves and delta plants thrive on the wet, marshy soils of the deltas. Conical trees grow on hills with some soil depth.
- Altitude: When elevation rises, so does the distribution of flora, which is comparable to that seen as latitude rises. In general, ‘altitude mirrors latitude,’ and there is a strong correlation between latitudinal and altitudinal climatic zonation, as well as natural vegetation.
- Temperature: Temperature, along with air humidity, precipitation, and soil, determines the nature and extent of vegetation in an area. Temperature affects the nature, type, and growth of plants in a given place, as the climate becomes colder as the temperature decreases or as the altitude increases. For example, the temperature drop affects the type and growth of vegetation in the foothills of the Himalayas over 915m and the hilly areas of the peninsula, and the vegetation in the foothills of the Himalayas here changes from tropical to subtropical temperate and alpine vegetation.
- Sunlight: It is defined as the change in the duration and amount of sunlight in different places. These changes in sunlight are related to latitude, altitude, seasons, and day length. For example, growth of trees and plants in summer is high due to the longer duration of sunlight. The southern Himalayas have longer hours of sunshine and are covered with denser vegetation than the northern slopes.
- Precipitation: In India, almost the entire rainy season marks the beginning of the southwest monsoon (June to September). Areas always have denser vegetation with more rainfall than other areas with less rainfall. For example, the monsoon rain causes strong tropical evergreen forests to grow on the western slopes of the western Goth Mountains due to southwestern monsoon rains, while there is no dense forest on the eastern slopes.
Types of Natural Vegetation
Tropical Evergreen Rainforest
- Tropical evergreen rainforests are found in areas with more than 200 cm of rainfall. They are mainly found in Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Assam, Nagaland, Western Ghats, Tarai in the Himalayas and northeastern regions of the Andaman Islands. They can also be found on Khasi and Jaintia hills.
- Trees in this area grow intensively. The main trees growing in this area are sandalwood, rosewood, gayan, mahogany, and bamboo.
- Plants of all kinds, including trees, shrubs and vines, are abundant, providing a hierarchy.
- Elephants, monkeys and lemurs are common animals in the area.
Tropical Deciduous Forest
- These are the most widespread forests in India.
- Also known as monsoon forest, it is spread over an area that receives 200-70 cm of rainfall.
- Trees in this type of forest drop leaves for 6 to 8 weeks in dry summer.
- According to the moisture content, these forests are divided into wet hardwoods and dry deciduous trees.
Source
- It is found in areas with 200 to 100 cm of precipitation.
- Mainly found on the eastern slopes of the Northeastern states and the western Goth Mountains, along the foothills of the Himalayas, Jharkhand, Western Orissa, and Chhattisgarh.
- Teak is the most dominant species in this forest.
- Bamboo, flesh, shisham, sandalwood, chier, kusum, arjun, mulberry and other commercially important species.
Dry Deciduous Forest
- This forest grows in areas with a rainfall of 50-100 cm.
- They are mainly observed in Central Deccan, Punjab, Haryana, parts of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and highland areas of southeast Rajasthan.
- There are open areas where teak, flesh, bloodpal and neem grow.
- Most of this area has been cleared for cultivation and some is used for grazing.
- Common animals: lion, tiger, pig, deer, elephant. There are also various birds, lizards, snakes and turtles.
Thorn Forests and Scrubs
- These specific types of trees provide insight into their natural vegetation and the environment in which they thrive. Obviously, this area receives only 70 cm of annual precipitation. This is why this farm started growing thorns to conserve water in this dry climate.
- In nature, trees often have bushes and thorns. India’s arid environment and natural vegetation reflects the characteristics of these plants.
- These plants can be found in the upper reaches of Rajasthan and Gujarat, where the environment is dry.
- The main plant species are acacias, palm trees, spurges, and cacti.
Montane Forest
- In mountainous areas, a decrease in temperature with increasing altitude results in a corresponding change in natural vegetation. Thus, from the tropics to the tundra, there is a continuum of natural vegetation belts in our order.
- Temperate rainforests occur at altitudes between 1,000 and 2,000 meters.
- Coniferous trees such as pine, cypress, fir, spruce, and cedar are thick in the temperate forest at 1,500~3,000m above sea level.
- It mainly covers the southern slopes of the Himalayas, the highlands of southern and northeastern India.
- Temperate grasslands are common in the highlands.
- At higher elevations, typically over 3,600 meters above sea level, temperate forests and grasslands give way to alpine vegetation.
- Trees common in this forest are fir, juniper, pine, and birch.
- They lag behind in growth as they approach snowboards and are widely used for grazing by nomadic tribes such as the Gujars and Bakarwals.
- At high altitudes, mosses and lichens form part of the tundra vegetation.
- Common animals in this forest are Kashmir deer, sika deer, wild sheep, rabbits, Tibetan antelope, yak, snow leopards, squirrels, hairy ibex, bears and rare red pandas, thick wool sheep and goats.\
Mangrove Forest
- It is found in coastal areas affected by tidal waves.
- Mud and silt accumulates on such dikes.
- Dense mangrove forests are a common variety with submerged plant roots.
- The Sundari Tree grows in the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta and provides a strong hardwood. Palms, coconuts, keora and agar also grow in some parts of the delta.
- The Royal Bengal Tiger is the most famous animal in the forest.
- Turtles, crocodiles, gharials and snakes also live in this forest.
Sample Questions
Question 1: What natural plants growth depend on?
Answer:
Plant growth depends on temperature and humidity. It also depends on factors such as slope and soil thickness.
Question 2: Why natural plants vary from place to place?
Answer:
Variation in sunlight hours in different places due to differences in latitude, altitude, time, and day length. So you can get different types of vegetation in different places depending on the photoperiod.
Question 3: How does climate affect plants?
Answer:
Rising temperatures lead to more frequent droughts, wildfires, and invasive pests resulting in loss of plant species. This has numerous detrimental effects, including: Reduced productivity: Longer droughts and more heat waves stress plants, reducing productivity.