Stratification of Vegetation - Qualitative Characters

Stratification of vegetation is another important feature of plant communities. There are different vertical strata in different communities. You might recall that in forests, we find several storeys or layers of plant species.

Stratification usually occurs because of life forms such as trees Shrubs, herbs and mosses differ in their requirements and ecological amplitudes with regard to light intensity, temperature, moisture conditions, soil and biotic factors. Yow let us have a closer look at the vegetation of a forest. A well developed forest may have four to five layers of vegetation. From top to bottom, they are: the canopy the understory, the shrub, the herb or ground layer and the forest floor.