Understanding how water resources shape our flora

• Main Authors: Araya, Yoseph, Walker, Nick
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: Tundra
• Online Access: https://oro.open.ac.uk/18366/; https://oro.open.ac.uk/18366/1/Water_resources_page_96_97_draft_2.pdf; http://darwin.defra.gov.uk/documents/16003/18065/16-003%20AR2%20App1%20-%20Water%20resources%20article.pdf

Water is one of the most important resources for plants. It controls and influences their diversity and distribution. Water availability in soil influences plants directly as a limiting resource, or indirectly by filling soil pore spaces and reducing oxygen supply, which limits plant root growth. Water regimes dictate different vegetation types and ecosystems. Global examples are the major world biomes, such as tropical rainforest, deserts or tundra. At this level, precipitation differences as a result of latitude and incoming solar radiation define which species prevail. At a regional level, plant communities are determined by precipitation differences associated with topographic features such as elevation.