Alps: Encyclopedia II - Alps - Flora

Alps - Flora

A natural vegetation limit with altitude is given by the presence of the chief deciduous trees — oak, beech, ash and sycamore maple. These do not reach exactly to the same elevation, nor are they often found growing together; but their upper limit corresponds accurately enough to the change from a temperate to a colder climate that is further proved by a change in the wild herbaceous vegetation. This limit usually lies about 1200 m above the sea on the north side of the Alps, but on the southern slopes it often rises to 1500 m, sometimes even to 1700 m.

It must not be supposed that this region is always marked by the presence of the characteristic trees. The interference of man has in many districts almost removed them, and, excepting the beech forests of the Austrian Alps, a considerable wood of deciduous trees is rare. In many districts where such woods once existed, their place has been occupied by the Scots pine and Norway spruce, which suffer less from the ravages of goats, the worst enemies of tree vegetation. The mean annual temperature of this region differs little from that of the British Islands; but the climate conditions are widely different. Here snow usually lies for several months, till it gives place to a spring and summer considerably warmer than the average of British seasons.

Typical plants found in the Alps:

Edelweiss
(Leontopodium alpinum)

stemless gentian
(Gentiana acaulis)

rusty-leaved Alpenrose
(Rhododendron ferrugineum)

Alpine dwarf orchid
(Chamorchis alpina)

glacier buttercup
(Ranunculus glacialis)

mountain pine
(Pinus mugo)

Alpine pasque-flower
(Pulsatilla alpina)

Alpine rock-jasmine (Androsace alpina)

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Flora", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki