history 102

history 102

6. Explain how the climate related limiting factors of light and wind can influence plant distribution?

Some scientists have observed that plants require light, water, wind, carbon dioxide, soil minerals and some reasonable temperature to survive. They have considered most of these factors and it is time to consider temperature, light and wind. Itself tied into all of these other factors in some way. This one environmental factor strongly determines the distribution of plants on the planet. Light is that visible portion of the solar radiation or electromagnetic spectrum. It is a form of kinetic energy that comes from the sun in tiny particles called quanta or photons, travelling in waves. Three properties of this climatic factor that affect plant growth and development are light quality, light intensity, and day length or photoperiod. Light quality refers to the specific wavelengths of light; light intensity is the degree of brightness that a plant receives; and day length is the duration of the day with respect to the night period.
In general, plants survive within a temperature range of 0 to 50 C. The favorable or optimal day and night temperature range for plant growth and maximum yields varies among crop species. Excessively low temperatures can also cause limiting effects on plant growth and development. For example, water absorption is inhibited when the soil temperature is low because water is more viscous at low temperatures and less mobile, and the protoplasm is less permeable.
When air that is close to the ground cools, the plants contracts and the pressure rises; when it warms, it expands and loses pressure. Where both cold and warm air occur in proximity, as over a lake and its adjacent shore, the cold flows to the direction of the warm air or from high to low pressure area to correct the pressure imbalance. This also happens in tropical Asia but in a larger and more complex way, as the monsoon winds.
work cited: "Environmental Factors...

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