What is Natural Vegetation, and What Does It Mean?
Natural vegetation is one of nature’s gifts. They develop spontaneously as a result of climate factors: rainfall, soil, weather, and terrain all influence the varieties of natural vegetation. Vegetation includes cultivated crops and fruits, as well as orchards, but not wild vegetation.
Factors that influence NATURAL VEGETATION GROWTH include:
Health
Terrain: The nature of the land influences the type of vegetation. The land is mostly utilised for farming if it is level and productive. If the ground is uneven, grassland and forests will grow on top of it.
Soil: Different types of soil are appropriate for various types of plant. Cactus and prickly shrubs thrive on sandy soil, whereas mangrove vegetation thrives in damp and swampy soil.
Climate
Temperature and humidity in the climate play a role in determining the kind and spread of vegetation.
– Evergreen forests thrive in high-temperature, high-humidity environments; thorny shrubs thrive in high-temperature, low-humidity environments.
Photoperiod (Daylight)
Photoperiod is determined by latitude, altitude, season, and day length. Because of the longer photoperiod, trees grow quicker in the summer.
Precipitation
If a location receives a lot of rain, it’s ideal for thick vegetation to thrive. Thorny shrubs, on the other hand, thrive in areas with little rainfall.
Types of Natural Vegetation in India:
(1) Tropical Evergreen Rain Forests,
(2) Deciduous or Monsoon Forests,
(3) Semi-Arid and Desert Vegetation,
(4) Tidal or Mangrove Forests, and
(5) Mountain Forests
The above are the many types of natural vegetation found in India.
- Tropical Evergreen Rain Forests:
- Grow in locations with more than 200 cm of annual rainfall.
- These forests may be found on the slopes of the Western Ghats and the northeastern parts of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Assam, Nagaland, the Tarai sections of the Himalayas and the Andaman Islands.
- The trees in these woods never lose all of their leaves.
- Sisthu, chaplash, rosewood, mahogany, bamboo, garjan, and sandalwood are some of the trees.
- Forests of the Deciduous or Monsoon type:
- found in places with rainfall ranging from 100 to 200 cm
- Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and the surrounding areas.
- During the dry winter and summer, trees drop their leaves.
- Teak, sandalwood, deodar, bluegum, ebony, sisam, jackfruit, mahua, palash, arjun, khair, and bamboo
- Vegetation in Semi-deserts and Deserts:
- Thorny shrubs, acacia, babul, and sand binding grasses occur in locations when rainfall is less than 50 cm.
- In these deserts, the Indian wild date known as “Khejur” is prevalent.
- They have extensive roots and large fleshy stems that store water in order to endure the prolonged drought.
- Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, and Karnataka are all home to this species.
- Tidal or Mangrove Forests:
- Occur near the shore and on the outskirts of deltas, such as the Ganga, Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, and Kaveri deltas.
- Tidal Forests get their name because their thick development relies on tidal water, which submerges the deltaic plains at high tides.
- Littoral Forests are another name for them.
- These woods are known as ‘Sundarbans’ in West Bengal.
- In these woodlands, the ‘sundri’ is the most important tree.
- Other trees include the hogla, garan, gewa, golpata, and pasur, among others.
- The beachfront strip is lined with palm and coconut palms.
- Mountain Forests:
- fluctuate in altitude with varied rainfall and temperature along the mountain slopes
- Himalayas up to 1500 metres, evergreen trees such as sal, teak, bamboo, and cane grow abundantly.
- Temperate conifer trees such as pine, fir, oak, maple, deodar, laurel, spruce, and cedar grow between 1,500 and 3,500 metres.
- Rhododendrons and junipers grow at greater altitudes in the Himalayas. Alpine meadows occur beyond these plant belts, up to the snowfield.
