Biomes

Photo courtesy of TreehuggerOpens in new window A biome is an area classified according to the distinctive type of climate, vegetation, and species that live in that location. Temperature range, soil type, and the amount of light and water are unique to a particular biome.

Major biomes include:

• desert
• grassland
• tropical
• temperate forests
• actic and alpine tundra

Types of biome are recognized worldwide based on climate, whether they are land or water based, on geology and soil, or on altitude above sea level.

Although each biome will have within it many different habitats, they are characterized by dominant forms of plant life and their associated animals which are adapted to their particular environment.

Biomes vary markedly in their capacity for growth, their productivity depending on water and light availability and temperature. For example, a square metre of temperate forest biome may produce ten times the growth of an alpine tundra biome.

They also differ markedly in the number of species which live there: the tropical rainforest biome contains more tree species than any other area in the world. Sometimes gardeners can seek to recreate a particular biome (e.g. in an alpine house or a tropical conservatory) by providing the appropriate climatic conditions for their plants to flourish.