I am writing up my A-level coursework and i am wondering why plants are shade tolerant? Is it due to the lack of competition within the shaded areas, so there is a larger amount of nutrients present in the soil?
2007-02-21 07:33:08 · 5 answers · asked by fia 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Botany
no, it usually has to do with the amount of sunlight the plants require and can tolerate. many shade loving plants such as ferns and hostas, will wither and die if they are in direct sunlight. also there tends to be more moisture in shaded soil since the sun is not making it evaporate quickly, and these plants require more moisture.
2007-02-21 07:40:11 · answer #1 · answered by dances with cats 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
All of those previous answers were good, but shade tolerant is kind of a misnomer. Those plants *thrive* in the shade and their adaptation is to be much more efficient at collecting light so that they can out compete other plants in that area. Many shade thriving plants have neat adaptations like they are darker in color (meaning they have more pigment to collect light), or have red on the bottom of the leaves which reflects back the light into the leaf.
Nutrients really have nothing to do with it.
2007-02-21 19:52:18 · answer #2 · answered by Miss Vida 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually it has more to do with the type of pigments in the plant. There are other pigments besides chlorophyll A and B. Some of them are xanthophyll, anthocyanin, carotene, etc. Plants growing in deep shade are actually better at absorbing light in the blue range. Longer wavelength light penetrates farther past the canopy than shorter wavelength light. It also penetrates deeper into the water column. So plants down on the forest floor or at the bottom of the pond will have pigments that best absorb and use the spectrum of light reaching them.
2007-02-21 17:21:59 · answer #3 · answered by Ellie S 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Random chance. Some plants evolved a set of genes that let them live in the shade and when they got there (like many plants do) they thrived even though there was less light and produced new plants.
2007-02-21 16:40:13 · answer #4 · answered by LabGrrl 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Many plants evolved to life in the conditions of the understory. Go out and look at the woods near you. Then think about rainforest.
It is not a case of competition, but rather adaption to less sun, cooler, less moisture and those sorts of changes.
2007-02-21 15:42:53 · answer #5 · answered by Susan M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋