What kind of physical factors besides photosynthesis and the chemistry and physiology of each...

[seriously disabled]

From what I read on the Internet plants, also called green plants (Viridiplantae in Latin), are living organisms of the kingdom Plantae including such multicellular groups as flowering plants, conifers, ferns and mosses, as well as, depending on definition, the green algae, but not red or brown seaweeds like kelp, nor fungi or bacteria.

 

Green plants have cell walls with cellulose and characteristically obtain most of the energy they need in order to live from sunlight via photosynthesis using chlorophyll contained in chloroplasts, which gives them their green color. Photosynthesis is a photochemical process and as such can be studied using photochemistry.

 

However some plants are parasitic and may not produce normal amounts of chlorophyll or photosynthesize...

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynthesis

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant_physiology

http://www.hcs.ohio-state.edu/hort/biology/pplan.html

 

But what kind of physical factors besides the chemistry and physiology of each plant will determine what kind of plant will grow in a particular location on the Earth land's surface?

Edited May 15, 2013 by seriously disabled

[Iggy]

But what kind of physical factors besides the chemistry and physiology of each plant will determine what kind of plant will grow in a particular location on the Earth land's surface?

Alkalinity of soil and water, water supply, oxygen supply, temperature. isolation from other species, the availability of pollinating insects, the presence of herbivores and their particular diet, the survivability of the plant's seeds in the digestive tract of resident herbivores, soil composition, soil consistency, depth of soil before one reaches rock or clay, and a host of other things.

[techhydra]

Alkalinity of soil and water, water supply, oxygen supply, temperature. isolation from other species, the availability of pollinating insects, the presence of herbivores and their particular diet, the survivability of the plant's seeds in the digestive tract of resident herbivores, soil composition, soil consistency, depth of soil before one reaches rock or clay, and a host of other things.

 

Good response on some of the varying factors that effect plant growth. In addition to this plants adapt to their environment in a similar way as animal species would. Some plants adapt in strange ways that may seem counter productive to survivability.

 

For example I live in California and I took a botany class in college, my professor was very knowledgeable and liked to share personal stories he'd encountered in his work. One was regarding the growth of California Cherry Trees and it was noticed that it was very difficult to grow cherry trees in a domestic environment. Wild trees were abundant typically in areas where coyotes were present. It was discovered that two species in the area primarily ate cherries which were foxes and coyotes which was later discovered that the stomach acids in coyotes was needed to dissolve a layer around the cherry seed before it could grow properly. Foxes on the other hand were ruled out because they primarily poop on rocks which makes it hard to grow a tree from their feces.

 

Nature is strange but it generally has its reasons!