Tree
hideA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to 6 m; some authors set a minimum of 10 cm trunk diameter (30 cm girth). Woody plants that do not meet these definitions by having multiple stems and/or small size, are called shrubs. Compared with most other plants, trees are long-lived, some reaching several thousand years old and growing to up to 115 m (379 ft) high.
Trees are an important component of the natural landscape because of their prevention of erosion and the provision of a weather-sheltered ecosystem in and under their foliage. Trees also play an important role in producing oxygen and reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, as well as moderating ground temperatures. They are also elements in landscaping and agriculture, both for their aesthetic appeal and their orchard crops (such as apples). Wood from trees is a building material, as well as a primary energy source in many developing countries. Trees also play a role in many of the world's mythologies (see trees in mythology).
For more information about Tree, read the full article at
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News tagged with trees
Scientists works to develop Christmas tree that doesn't shed needles
Dec 17, 2009 |
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After chasing the perfect Christmas tree for three decades, Gary Chastagner could be getting close.
Low-cost temperature sensors, tennis balls to monitor mountain snowpack
Dec 14, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Fictional secret agent Angus MacGyver knew that tough situations demand ingenuity. Jessica Lundquist takes a similar approach to studying snowfall. The University of Washington assistant professor ...
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Ecosystem, vegetation affect intensity of urban heat island effect
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 15, 2009 |
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NASA researchers studying urban landscapes have found that the intensity of the "heat island" created by a city depends on the ecosystem it replaced and on the regional climate. Urban areas developed in arid and semi-arid ...
UNSW students sequence genome of the Wollemi Pine
Dec 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- UNSW students have sequenced the chloroplast genome of the ancient Wollemi Pine - a world first that could reveal how a "dinosaur" of the tree kingdom survived 200 million years of shifting ...
World's rarest gorilla ready for its close-up (w/ Video)
Dec 16, 2009 |
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The world's rarest -- and most camera shy -- great ape has finally been captured on professional video on a forested mountain in Cameroon, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society and Germany's NDR Naturfilm.
Astronauts to carry Christmas cheer to ISS
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Dec 19, 2009 |
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Despite being separated from their families, astronauts heading to the International Space Station next week are excited to be spending Christmas in space, a crew member said Saturday.
Scientists get to the root of ancient case of sour grapes
Dec 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists in Cambridge have discovered that a lowly grape variety grown by peasants - but despised by noblemen - during the Middle Ages was the mother of many of today’s greatest grape varieties, ...
Wild chimps have near human understanding of fire, study says
Dec 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The use and control of fire are behavioral characteristics that distinguish humans from other animals. Now, a new study by Iowa State University anthropologist Jill Pruetz reports that savanna ...
Kansas scientists probe mysterious possible comet strikes on Earth
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Dec 14, 2009 |
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It's the stuff of a Hollywood disaster epic: A comet plunges from outer space into the Earth's atmosphere, splitting the sky with a devastating shock wave that flattens forests and shakes the countryside.
Global warming could significantly impact US wine and corn production, scientists say
Dec 14, 2009 |
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When it comes to nature, timing is everything. Spring flowers depend on birds and insects for pollination. But if spring-like weather arrives earlier than usual, and flowers bloom and wither before the pollinators appear, ...
World's first skeletal mount of Paluxysaurus jonesi reveals new biology
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The Early Cretaceous sauropod Paluxysaurus jonesi weighed 20 tons, was 60 feet long and had a neck 26 feet long, according to scientists who prepared the world's first full skeletal mount ...
New results from a terra-ific decade in orbit
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 15, 2009 |
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December 18, 2009, marks the tenth year since the launch of Terra, one of NASA's "flagship" Earth observing satellites. But the decade is more than just a mechanical milestone. With each additional day and ...
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