frst 200 Forest Plant Biology

terminology

annual

A type of plant that completes its life cycle within a single growing season.

biennual

A plant that normally requires two growing seasons to complete its life cycle. Flowering and fruiting occur in its second year.

chlorophyll

A fundamental pigment in chloroplasts that absorbs red and blue wavelengths of light, and reflects green wavelengths. There are two types: chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b

chloroplast

A plastid organelle in which chlorophyll and other pigments are located, contains thylakoids and is the site of photosynthesis. Chloroplasts occur in plants and algae (green color)

cultural ecosystem service

Non-material benefits that people obtain and value as part of being human, including inspiration, cultural identity, spiritual experience, sense of home/place, tourism and recreation.

perennial

A plant in which the vegetative structures live year after year. Reproductive activities may or may not occur each year.

photosynthesis

Generally, converting inorganic CO₂ into organic sucrose (C₆H₁₂O₆) using sunlight as energy and releasing oxygen. More specifically, the carboxylase activity of Rubisco combined with the Calvin cyle, consuming CO₂ and generating energy molecules such as ATP and NADPH, along with carbohydrates.

plant

A group of non-motile eukaryotic organisms that absorb nutrients in solution and possess chloroplasts that are capable of synthesizing complex organic molecules (ex. sugars) from simple inorganic molecules.

producer

An organism that provides usable carbon and energy to other organisms in an ecological food chain through the process of photosynthesis and carbon fixation.

provisioning ecosystem service

material benefits that people obtain from plants, including water, food, fuel and market goods. Agriculture and forestry are examples of provisioning services.

secondary growth

The developmental process by which plants, such as shrubs and trees, create secondary xylem (wood) and secondary phloem tissues.

shrub

A woody plant in which the side shoots are well-developed, so that there is no trunk. They are usually less than 9 m (30 ft) high.

tree

A woody, perennial plant that is often (but not exclusively) tall and often (but not exclusively) has a single main stem/trunk with few or no branches from the base.

ecosystem

A major interacting system that involves both living organisms and their physical environment.

biomass

The total living matter of a given system.

timberline

The upper limit of continuous, erect trees in a forest; determined by climate (annual temperatures and precipitation)

evapotranspiration.

A term blending of two words evaporation and transpiration reflecting the combined process of water evaporating from surfaces and loss of water vapour directly from plant tissues.

transpiration

Water vapour lost to the atmosphere from inside plant tissues, often through stomatal pores. Forms a major component of the global hydrological cycle.

productive

In a forestry context, this means forested land that is capable of growing enough wood for commercial purposes

non-timber forest products

Products or services of biological origin other than timber, derived from forests. These include wild foods, medicines, fibres etc.

intact forest landscape

A methodology developed to determine forest degradation and track the worlds remaining forests that have been largely free from human disturbance.

biodiversity

A term blending of two words biological and diversity to reflect "the variability among living organisms from all sources, including, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part: this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems” according to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.