Seeing the forest from the treesDi Liang and Brendan O’Neill

There are many types of forest…

What do trees need to grow?

Light, water, soil, space, nutrients, …

How do trees get these things?

Leaves, roots, growing tall toward the sun, use leaves to capture light energy

What do trees need to grow?

Light…

How do trees get light?

How do trees get light?

Category Height Leaf sizeKapok (Ceiba pentandra) 70 m (230 feet) 7-20 cm (3-8 inches)

White oak (Castanopsis acuminatissima)

40 m (130) 9.0-11.5 cm (3-5 inches)

Gumtree (Sapium glandulosum) 30 m (100 feet) 27 cm (11 inches)

Ant tree (Triplaris americana) 10 m (32 feet) 40 cm (16 inches)

Giant taro (Alocasia macrorrhiza) 1.2-1.8 m (4-6 feet)

20-90 cm (7-35 inches)

Selected tree species in rain forests

Kapok

Ant tree

Gumtree

Giant taro

…but there are so many types of trees and leaves…why is this so?

Lets look at different leaves

Why are some leaves smaller?

So why do trees and leaves come in so many shapes and sizes?

What other things to trees need to grow?

Why do trees grow the way they do?

Let’s look at how water gets to tree leaves

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6f2BiFiXiM