The fibrous root network of grasses is useful for short-term erosion control, particularly on sloping ground. Establishing long-term plant communities requires forethought as to appropriate species for the climate, size of stock required, and impact of replanted vegetation on local fauna. Typical evergreen broad-leaved species include camellias and camphor trees, while deciduous forests include oaks, maples, alders, zelkovas, and birches. Species of pine are the most representative in the country; other conifers include spruces, larches, and yews.
Another major factor that controls the distribution of vegetation within the Everglades is the hydrologic pattern, which is defined by the depth, timing, and duration of inundation (flooding) as well as the quality and salinity of the source water. Jan 10, 2020 Vegetation Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region; it refers to the ground cover provided by plants, and is, by far, the most abundant biotic element of the biosphere. The plants of an area or a region; plant life: hills sparsely covered with vegetation. The act or process of vegetating.
- Land
- People
- Economy
- Government and society
- Cultural life
- History
- South Korea to 1961
- Military rule
- Restoration of civilian government
- Relations with the North
The long, hot, humid summer is favourable for the development of extensive and varied vegetation. Some 4,500 plant species are known. Forests once covered about two-thirds of the total land area, but, because of fuel needs during the long, cold winter and the country’s high population density, the original forest has almost disappeared. Except for evergreen broad-leaved forests in the narrow subtropical belt along the southern coast and on Cheju Island, most areas contain deciduous broad-leaved and coniferous trees. Typical evergreen broad-leaved species include camellias and camphor trees, while deciduous forests include oaks, maples, alders, zelkovas, and birches. Species of pine are the most representative in the country; other conifers include spruces, larches, and yews. Among indigenous species are the Abeliophyllum distichum (white forsythia or Korean abelia), a shrub of the olive family, and the Korean fir (Abies koreana).
Wild animal life is similar to that of northern and northeastern China. The most numerous larger mammals are deer. Tigers, leopards, lynx, and bears, formerly abundant, have almost disappeared, even in remote areas. Some 380 species of birds are found in the country, most of which are seasonal migrants. Many of South Korea’s fish, reptile, and amphibian species are threatened by intensive cultivation and environmental pollution except in the DMZ between North and South Korea, which has become a de facto nature preserve. Once farmland, and subsequently a devastated battleground, the DMZ has lain almost untouched since the end of hostilities and has reverted to nature to a large extent, making it one of the most pristine undeveloped areas in Asia. It contains many ecosystems including forests, estuaries, and wetlands frequented by migratory birds. The zone serves as a sanctuary for hundreds of bird species, among them the endangered white-naped and red-crowned cranes, and is home to dozens of fish species and Asiatic black bears, lynxes, and other mammals.
People
Ethnic groups
It was long believed that the Korean people originally may have had links with the people of Central Asia, the Lake Baikal region of Siberia, Mongolia, and the coastal areas of the Yellow Sea. Tools of Paleolithic type and other artifacts found in Sokch’ang, near Kongju, are quite similar to those of the Lake Baikal and Mongolian areas. In 2017, genetic analysis of bones found in Primoryekray in Far Eastern Russia suggested that Koreans were related to a population that had inhabited that area for at least 7,700 years. The genes of these Neolithic humans were expressed alongside those of indigenous agriculturalists from Southeast Asia to produce the genetic structure of modern Koreans.
The population of South Korea is highly homogeneous; almost the entire population is ethnically Korean, and there is a small minority of ethnic Chinese permanent residents. The number of foreigners is growing, especially in the major urban areas; people from Japan, the United States (including members of the military), and China make up the largest foreign populations, although they still constitute only small fractions. Many foreign nationals are employed in business or the diplomatic corps, and tens of thousands of workers come from China and Southeast Asia.
Languages
All Koreans speak the Korean language, which is often classified as one of the Altaic languages, has affinities to Japanese, and contains many Chinese loanwords. The Korean script, known in South Korea as Hangul (Han’gŭl) and in North Korea as Chosŏn muntcha, is composed of phonetic symbols for the 10 vowels and 14 consonants. Korean often is written as a combination of Chinese ideograms and Hangul in South Korea, although the trend is toward using less Chinese. A large number of English words and phrases have crept into the language—either intact or modified by local usage—as a result of the American presence in the country since 1950.
Religion
Freedom of religion is constitutionally guaranteed in South Korea, and there is no national religion. There also is little uniformity of religious belief, a situation that often is confusing to outside observers. Historically, several religions prevailed successively: shamanism (the religious belief in gods, demons, and ancestral spirits responsive to a priest, or shaman), Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism. None of these religions was abandoned, however, when one supplanted another in dominance, and all have had a role in the country’s sociocultural development. Thus, the rites of shamanism (which has existed in Korea since ancient times) are still practiced by many. The principles and social outlook of Confucianism are still much in evidence in Korean daily life and family relationships, and Buddhism remains influential—even among people who may be nominally Christian, for example. Approximately one-fourth of the population professes Christianity, with Protestants (particularly Presbyterians and Methodists), independent Christians, and Roman Catholics the largest groups. Less than one-sixth of the population is Buddhist.
Christianity is relatively new in Korea, Roman Catholic missionaries having reached the peninsula only in the late 18th century, and their Protestant counterparts a century later. Christianity has had a profound effect on the modernization of Korean society. Buddhism was first introduced in the 4th century ce and was the official religion of the Koryŏ dynasty, which began in 918. About one-sixth of the population adheres to so-called new religions. These include Wŏnbulgyo (Wŏn Buddhism), Taejonggyo (“Great Ancestral Religion”), and Ch’ŏndogyo. Ch’ŏndogyo (“Teaching of the Heavenly Way”), originally known as Tonghak (“Eastern Learning”), is a blend of Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, and even Daoism; it spread widely in the latter part of the 19th century. Shamanism and traditional geomancy (p’ungsu) persist, though their practices usually are limited to certain occasions, such as funerals. Confucianism was the basis of national ethics during the Chosŏn (Yi) dynasty (1392–1910); though the number of its official adherents is now small, most Korean families still follow its principles, including ancestor worship.
Adapted to desert living
Over the past 100 years, people have removed a lot of native Sonoran Desert vegetation and planted non-native plants, trees, and shrubs in urban areas. However, some desert remnants remain within the Phoenix metropolitan area, for example, Papago Park near the Phoenix Zoo and Desert Botanical Garden.
Scientists are conducting plant surveys across the Phoenix metropolitan area. They will be comparing the survey results to studies done 20 years ago. They also are interested in comparing vegetation in desert remnants to that in residential areas, parks, golf courses and vacant lots.
You can help preserve our natural environment
You can participate in this study by comparing schoolyard and/or backyard data to desert remnant data and sharing this information with CAP LTER scientists. You may also decide to correlate your vegetation studies with the Ecology Explorers’ bird and insect studies.
Study the vegetation in our ecosystem
Why study vegetation?
- Plants form the basic foundation of food webs and support other life forms.
- Native plants have unique adaptations for living in desert environments.
- Non-native plants have different requirements (soil, water, nutrients) than native plants.
- The vegetation can influence the kinds of animals that are attracted to the area.
- Vegetation can be a sensitive indicator of change in local or regional environments.
- Vegetation can have an impact on local climate and water use.
What vegetation should we study?
The items most commonly found in a schoolyard include grass, trees, shrubs, cacti, and ground cover.
What does vegetation tell us about the urban environment?
Vegetation tells us about other environmental factors such as nutrient or water availability. Differences between residential areas and desert remnants tells us about human behavior and decisions to alter the landscape. Identifying non-native vegetation contributes to understanding similarities and differences between animal populations in desert remnants and residential areas. There may be many factors that help to explain why certain types of vegetation are planted in particular areas. Not all residential areas are alike, so it is also worthwhile to compare differences among schoolyards and backyards.
What materials will you need?
- Map of Your School
- Pencil
- Data Sheet
- Protractor
- Ruler
- Metric Tape Measure
- Metric Measuring Wheel (optional)
Vegetation Protocols
How to survey schoolyard vegetation
a). Size of yard: measure perimeter, use geometry to calculate area.
b). Estimate the percentage of landcover in your study area. Record your findings on the habitat description data sheet. You will need to do this before entering data into the CAP LTER database. YOU ONLY NEED TO DO THIS ONCE PER AREA OF STUDY.
c). Record the number, identity, location, and size of trees:
1. count trees, give ID numbers to the trees you will be measuring
2. identify species (mesquite) or category (palm)
3. measure circumference at breast height (CBH)
4. estimate height
5. estimate size of canopy
d). Record the number, identity, location, and size of cacti1. count cacti, give ID numbers to the cacti you will be measuring
2. identify species
3. measure circumference (CBH) for tall cacti and area covered for smaller cacti
4. measure height: for small cactus use a tape measure, for large cactus estimate following procedure for trees
e). Record the number, location, and size of shrubs:1. count shrubs, give ID numbers to shrubs you will be measuring
2. identify species
3. use tape measure to measure height and canopy size
Vegetation Identification Key
Identification key for study of vegetation
Included here is a key to common desert plants that are found in the Sonoran Desert and may be used in “desert landscaping” and a list with descriptions of common ornamental plants.
You may wish to create your own “key” for plants around your schoolyard as they may be a combination of ornamental and desert plants. You might wish to contact local landscape architects or nurseries for help in identifying your plants.
Cactus
Barrel cactus Large plant (0.5-3 m high). Barrel shaped. Vertical ribs. | |
Ferocactus acanthodes (Compass barrel cactus). None of the spines are hooked. Ferocactus wislizeni (Fishhook barrel cactus). Some of the spines are hooked. | |
Cholla cactus Cylindrical stems, many branches. | |
Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa (buckhorn cholla). End joints 2 cm or more in diameter. Joints do not fall off and there are no joints scattered under plants. Cylindropuntia arbuscula (pencil cholla). End joints 7-10 mm in diameter. Cylindropuntia bigelovii (teddy bear cholla). Fruits do not grow in chains. End joints short and very easily dislodged. May be joints scattered around underneath plant. Can be up to 6 feet tall (~1.8 m). Cylindropuntia fulgida (chain fruit cholla). Fruits grow in chains. End joints longer and may be dislodged but not as easily. Can be up to 12 feet tall (~3.6 m). Cylindropuntia leptocaulis (desert Christmas cactus). End joints 3-5 mm in diameter and 2.5-7.5 mm long. Plant less than 1 m high. May have red fruit. | |
Hedgehog cactus | |
Echinocereus engelmannii (Engelmann’s hedgehog cactus). Verical ribs. Plant small. Usually less than 0.5 m high. Stems single jointed. Grows vertically. Plant looks very spiny. | |
Pincushion cactus | |
Mammillaria grahamii (Arizona fishhook cactus). Vertical ribs. Small round cactus. Spines are hooked (like a fishhook). | |
Prickly pear cactus Stems flat and broad. | |
Opuntia basilaris (beavertail cactus). Plants without spines. Opuntia chlorotica (pancake prickly pear). All of the long spines on the flat surface of the stems point downward. Most stems are more round than oblong. Spines 2-4 cm long. Opuntia engelmannii (Engelmann’s prickly pear). Joints can be more than 25 cm long. Joints more oblong than round. Spines 2-4 cm long. Usually does not grow close to ground. Spines equally distributed between top and bottom halves of joints. Opuntia phaeacantha (brown-spined prickly pear or sprawling prickly pear). Joints 15-25 cm long. Joints more oblong than round. Spines 5-6 cm long. Most of longer spines are on top half of joints. Grows close to ground. | |
Saguaro cactus | |
Carnegiea gigantea (saguaro). Vertical ribs. Stem is much taller than wide (at least 10 times). Very massive. One main trunk with the possibility of several branches high up on the trunk. | |
Ocotillo (Not actually a cactus but may be confused as one. Actually a shrub.) | |
Fouquieria splendens (ocotillo) Up to 6 m tall, vertical branches joining at ground. many spines along branches. Leaves green, oval, up to 5 cm. long. Most of the year canes are leafless./p> | |
Trees
Species | Description |
Acacia greggii (catclaw acacia) | Spines very curved, like a cat’s claw. |
Parkinsonia florida (blue palo verde) | Bark/branches blue-green, leaflets 4-8 cm long, usually 3 or less pairs of leaflets per stem. |
Parkinsonia microphylla (foothills palo verde) | Bark/branches yellow-green. Leaflets very tiny (3 mm long or less). Usually 4 to 8 pairs of leaflets per stem. |
Parkinsonia aculeata (Mexican palo verde) | Bark and/or young branches yellow-green. Main leaf stems flattened and 10 cm long or longer. Leaflets alternate. Spines in clusters of three. |
Olneya tesota (ironwood) | Medium-sized tree, up to 9 m tall. Trunk up to 45 cm in diameter. Leaflets and bark grayish. Bark may be stringy. Spines not yellow and may be slightly curved. |
Prosopis velutina (velvet mesquite) | Small tree, up to 3 m tall. Leaflets and bark not gray, spines yellowish, not curved. Bark not stringy. Branches grow in a zig-zag pattern. |
Shrubs
I
Characteristics
Leaves absent or obscure | Go to II |
Leaves linear, sides parallell (like a blade of grass) | Go to III |
Leaves triangular (deltoid) | Go to IV |
Everything else | Go to V |
II
Species | Description |
Ephreda sp. | 1 m tall. Scale-like leaves, when present. Stems are yellow-green. Stems jointed. |
Fouquieria splendens (ocotillo) | Leaves green, oval, up to 5 cm long. Leafless most of the year. Many spines on stems. |
Krameria grayi (white ratany) | Up to 0.5 m tall. Leaves gray, finely hairy, narrow, up to 12 mm long. |
III
Characteristics
Leaves hairy | Go to A |
Leaves not hairy | Go to B |
| A | |
Species | Description |
Hymenoclea salsola (burro brush, cheeseweed) | Leaves, dark green, very slender, lower leaves have 3 or more threadlike divisions, up to 7.6 cm long. Foliage has a cheesy odor when crushed. |
| B | |
Species | Description |
Aptriplex canescens (four-wing saltbush) | Up to 2.5 m but mostly 1.2 m. Leaves gray green, narrown up to 5 cm long. |
Baccharis salicifolia (seep willow) | Up to 3.5 m high. Leaves dark green, shiny, waxy, sticky, lance-shaped, toothe, up to 15 cm long ans 12 mm wide. |
Baccharis sarothroides (desert broom) | Up to 3 m tall. Leaves bright green, smooth, sticky, up to 4 cm long and 3 mm wide. Growth resembles a broom. |
Bebbia juncea (chuckwalla’s delight) | Up to 1.2 m tall. Leaves (when present) dark green, sparse, linear to lance shaped, lobed, rough, hairy, up to 5 cm long. |
Gutierrezia sarothrae (broom snakeweed) | Up to 1.2 m tall. Leaves dark green, very narrow, up to 3 mm wide and 6.4 cm long. |
IV
Species | Description |
Ambrosia deltoidea (triangle bursage) | Up to 1.2 m tall. Leaves gray green above, white and hairy underneath, finely toothed, up to 3 cm long. |
Viguiera parishii (parish viguiera) | Up to 1.2 m tall. Leaves dark green, hairy, toothed, crinkled, up to 4 cm long. Grayish bark. |
V
Vegetation Cover
Characteristics
| Leaves serrate (toothed) or divided/compound AND hairy | Go to A |
| Leaves serrate (toothed) or divided/compound and NOT hairy | Go to B |
| Leaves simple and entire (not toothed) AND hairy | Go to C |
| Leaves simple and entire (not toothed) and NOT hairy | Go to D |
Vegetation Meaning
A | |
Species | Description |
Ambrosia ambrosioides (canyon ragweed) | Up to 1 m tall. Leaves green, hairy, elongated to lance-shaped, toothed, up to 12.7 cm long and 2.5 cm wide. |
Hibiscus denudatus (rock hibiscus) | Up to 1 m tall. Leaves yellow-green, densely hairy, oval to ellipitical shapped, toothed, and up to 3 cm long. |
Hyptis emoryi (desert lavendar) | Up to 4.5 m tall. Leaves gray-green, oval shaped, hairy, toothed, up to 6 cm long. |
B | |
Species | Description |
Celtis pallida (desert hackberry) | Up to 6 m tall. Leaves dark green, elliptical to oval, toothed or untoothed, up to 4 cm long and 19 mm wide. |
Trixis californica (trixis) | Up to 1 m tall. Leaves dark green, lance-shaped, smooth edge or toothed, up to 5 cm long and 12 mm wide. |
C | |
Species | Description |
Encelia farinosa (brittlebush) | Up to 1.2 m tall. Leaves greenish-gray, oblong or triangular-shaped up to 10 cm long. |
D | |
Species | Description |
Atriplex polcarpa (little-leaf saltbush) | Resembles Atriplex canescens (see part III B), but leaves are small. |
Celtis pallida (desert hackberry) | Up to 6 m tall. Leaves dark green, elliptical to oval, toothed or untoothed, up to 4 cm long and 19 mm wide. |
Larrea tridentata (creosote bush) | Up to 3 m tall. Leaves dark green to yellow-green, waxy, resinous, three leaflets joined at base, up to 10 mm long. Strongly scented. |
Lycium sp. (wolfberry) | Branches usually spiny. Leaves in clusters. Leaves shaped from nearly sylindrical to flat. Leaves fleshy. |
Simmondsia chinensis (jojoba) | Up to 3.5 m tall. Leaves grayish green, leathery, thick, and ellipitical, up to 4 cm long. |
Ziziphus obtusifolia (gray thorn) | Spine branches. Leaves alternate and in clusters. Leaves oblong or ellipitcal. |
Trixis californica (trixis) | Up to 1 m tall. Leaves dark green, lance-shaped, smooth edged or toothed, up to 5 cm long and 12.7 mm wide. |
Vegetation Data
Record your data using the sheet outlines below
Data Sheet: Need a data sheet to record your data? Choose a link below to get a printable data sheet.
Vegetation Types
Share and compare your data
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Go to the Ecology Explorers Data Center.
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