Tropical MorphologyHow Plants Adapt To Rain Forest

The University of GeorgiaCollege of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences

IntroductionThe Tropical Environment

of Costa Rica

About The Author

• Dr. Paul A. Thomas– Professor of Floriculture– Department of Horticulture– The University of Georgia– Extension Specialist – Really into Photography!

Hope you enjoy my images

Learning Objectives

• 1. Describe the three land regions in Costa Rica and how their soil differs in relation to rain and moisture.

• 2. Be able to describe some of the challenges facing the Costa Rican people, and how they must adapt to their environment.

Tropical Environments

Large tropical storms can generate great amounts of rainfall

Mt. Arenal, a source for new tropical soils and nutrients.

Steaming hot rocks released by Arenal’s active volcano tumbling down the slope.

The Volcanic Rainforest

This slopes are so steep that no one tries to develop or farm the land.

Many species of tropical trees are harvested for wood products.

Small farms and Coffee plantations are established in the narrow valleys.

Local farmers clear the nearby slopes and then use the land for dairy farm grazing

Inland Plains/Savannah

The relatively flat inland plains allows for cattle grazing and grain crops.

Many of Costa Rica’s larger cities are established on the flat, fertile soils

where sugar cane and rice are grown .

Coastal Plains

Wet, soggy coastal soils are home to Crocodiles and other water-loving animals.

Dense, layered soils do not readily allow gas exchange so roots may struggle to breath. Thus

they don’t try to penetrate deeply in the soils

The sandy, heavy soils are perfect for date and oil palms to be grown.

A beach near Uvita, Costa Rica

Tropical Rainforests are facing competition from farming and growing cities all over the world.

Summary

We have seen that there are three very distinct regions of land in Costa Rica. There are distinct ways plants adapt to each region. We have also looked at just a few of the ways that Costa Rican people work with the land. Like plants, the residents of Costa Rica must adapt to the land form, and the environmental conditions.

Assessment Opportunity

• Explain why an Oak tree in the United States might have a deep root system, and a Banana might have a shallow, wider root system in Costa Rica. What do they share in common? What is different?

• Explain why slash and burn deforestation is so devastating to tropical soils? How do Costa Ricans use more sustainable methods to harvest wood and plant crops?

For Future Exploration

• http://www.arenal.net/costa-rica-volcanoes.htm

• http://library.thinkquest.org/17457/volcanoes/advantages.php

• http://www.mbgnet.net/sets/rforest/plants/adapt.htm