Plant Adaptations

1. Plant Adaptations

2. Rain Forests • Tropical rain forests are dense, which is why leaves have adapted to try to capture as much light as possible. • Leaves in the dark understory of the rain forest are large so they can absorb as much light as possible. Some leaves are able to turn as the sun moves. • The amount of water a plant catches is also controlled by leaf adaptations. • Some leaves have drip tips and a waxy surface to allow water to run off. This stops the growth of bacteria and fungi.

3. Rain Forests • Many bromeliads and epiphytes have a central reservoir to collect water, instead of collecting it in roots. This way the water is quickly absorbed through hairs on leaves. • Many plants have dry tips and grooved leaves. • Some leaves have an oily coating to shed water. • Leaves in the upper canopy are dark green, small, and leathery to reduce water loss in the strong sunlight.

4. Deserts • Most desert plants have small leaves or no leaves at all. • The smaller or fewer leaves a plant has, the less H2O is lost during transpiration since it has less surface area exposed to the sun and wind. • For desert plants with small leaves or none at all, the twigs and stems help to carry out photosynthesis. • Plants that grow in the dessert usually will have long root systems that will either spread out wide or go deep into the ground to absorb water.

5. Desserts • Plants, like the cactus, will grow spines to discourage animals from eating them for their water that they store. • Some dessert plants have no leaves or small seasonal leaves that grow only after it rains. • The leaves that do grow will have a wax coating to help reduce water loss. • Some dessert plants will grow leaves with hair to help shade the plant to reduce water loss.

6. Deciduous Forest • Tree vegetation composed primarily of broad-leaved trees that shed all their leaves during one season. • In the summer, the trees have broad thick leaves to absorb sunlight and go through photosynthesis. • During the winter and fall, the leaves have to fall to minimize water loss.

7. Deciduous Forest • Wildflowers grow on the forest floor early in the spring before trees leaf-out and shade the forest floor. • Trees have thick bark to protect against cold winters. • Many trees are deciduous (they drop their leaves in the autumn, and grow new ones in the 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.

8. Tundra • Trees cannot grow in the tundra. • Tundra plants do not have deep root systems. They must also be able to survive the climate and low sunlight levels. • Some arctic plants include: • Low shrubs • Lichens • mosses

9. Tundra • Tundra plants are small and low growing due to lack of nutrients, because being close to the ground helps keep the plants from freezing. • Plants are dark in color-some are even red-this helps them absorb solar heat. • 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 center of the flower, helping the plant stay warm.

10. Group Activity • Now, you will be divided up into groups of two. • Each group will cut out the activity for the tree map. • Each group will lay out the cards on the desk and sort them into the correct categories.