Deciduous plants, shrubs, and trees have leaves that deciduous.
Deciduous is an adjective used to refer to plants, shrubs or trees whose leaves expire . Before proceeding to know the meaning of the term, it is necessary to discover its etymological origin. In this case, we can establish that it is a word that derives from Latin since it is the result of the sum of two words from that language:
- Caducus , which can be translated as “falling.”
- Folium , which is synonymous with “leaf” .
Characteristics of deciduous trees
When a certain time of year arrives, deciduous species lose their leaves, as they dry out and fall off. Therefore there is a period where deciduous trees lack foliage .
While deciduous plants lose their leaves at some point , evergreen plants maintain their foliage permanently. In this way, evergreens always have green leaves, unlike deciduous ones.
Temperate deciduous forests are made up of deciduous trees.
The flowering
It is important to mention that certain deciduous trees, after losing their leaves, flower . This action contributes to pollination since the flowers are easily detected by insects due to the lack of foliage. In addition, the wind is responsible for dispersing pollen more effectively.
This flowering of deciduous plants, however, requires greater effort from the plant and is not always successful because low temperatures can damage the new flowers.
Examples of deciduous
An example of a deciduous tree is the walnut tree , whose scientific name is Juglans regia . This species, which can reach a height of twenty-five meters, has alternate leaves about thirty centimeters long that, at a certain time of the year, fall to the ground. It should be noted that the walnut tree is exploited by man thanks to the quality of its wood and the nut, an edible fruit that has a high amount of protein, omega 3 fatty acids and vitamins B and C.
Among the most significant deciduous trees are also the chestnut , which can reach up to 30 meters in height; the ginkgo biloba , which is known as the fan tree since its leaves are shaped like those elements; and the lagerstroemia indica , which has a size of about 8 meters and stands out for the beauty of its flowers.
A type of temperate forest
In the same way, we cannot ignore the existence of what is known as a temperate deciduous forest . This can be found in corners such as Japan , Canada , Russia and Chile and, as its name indicates, it has the particularity of being made up of deciduous trees. Precisely for this reason, in this type of forest it is common for trees such as elms, oaks, beeches and maples to take center stage.
The animal species that live in the temperate deciduous forest must be able to adapt to the changes that it experiences. These specimens range from birds of prey to rodents, including hedgehogs, squirrels and woodpeckers, for example.