KINGDOM PLANTAE - TAXONOMY

ALGAL PhylaRhodophyta – Red Algae

Phaeophyta – Brown Algae

Chlorophyta – Green Algae

Bryophyta - Mosses

Tracheophyta – Vascular Plants

Subphylum – Pteridophyta - Ferns

Subphylum Spermopsida – Seed Plants

Gymnosperms – Naked Seeded Angiosperms – Enclosed Seeded

Monocots Dicots

GYMNOSPERMS

Phylum

Tracheophyta

-Subphylum Spermopsida – “Sperm”

= “Seed”

CYCADS – 100 Species

CONIFERS- most successful Gymnosperms

GINKOS – 1 species remains

Look Familiar?

GYMNOSPERMS- “Naked Seeded”

Most Common Class – The Conifers

• Typical coniferous forest primarily spruce, fir and pine.

• Not all coniferous forests have the same appearance, some conifers are better suited for a warmer wetter climate.

This is an old-

growth

coniferous

forest

consisting of

Giant Sequoia

trees. This

type of tree

prefers more

precipitation

than most of

the conifers in

the Okanagan

CAUTION

WATCH

FOR

FALLING

LUMBER

Did you ever go back and study your family TREE?

Anyone ever been to CAPILANO SUSPENSION

BRIDGE – North Vancouver?

Here is a coniferous

forest located in a

temperate

rainforest.

In a temperate

rainforest there is

year-round

precipitation

through four

seasons; typically

warm summers and

cool winters

CHARACTERISTICS COMMON TO CONIFERS

•“Conifer” – Means “Cone

Bearer”.

•Leaves are adapted to take

needle shape, a thick cuticle

and reduced surface area

allows conifers to grow in dry

cold climates without losing

too much water.

•Almost all conifers are

evergreens : They do NOT

shed their needles seasonally.

Deciduous trees shed their

leaves

Conifer wood has growth rings of XYLEM

The

meristematic

tissue called

VASCULAR

CAMBIUM

produces

XYLEM to

the inside and

PHLOEM to

the outside.

AGING A TREE

A Forestry

Technician

uses a tree

borer to

take out a

tree core

sample

There are two

types of Xylem

rings.Spring Wood

(Xylem) is a lighter

colour.

-In the springtime

rapid cell division

gives rise to very

large cells.

Summer Wood

(Xylem) is darker.

- In summer tissue

grows slower and

cells are more

compact

THE CONE BEARERS

Mature female (ovulate) cone

Several female cones on a

Ponderosa Pine- Very common

conifer to the Okanagan

Clusters of female

cones on a Spruce

Tree

What’s Wrong With This Picture? This is a European

Larch a close

relative to a

Tamarack. Its still

a conifer (cone-

bearer) but its not

a true

“EVERGREEN”

Male Cone

Female Cone

Conifers can be classified by the following:

Characteristics

of the bark

Needle shape,

length and

texture

Cone size,

shape and

scale patterns

These cones with the little tags sticking out

from the scales is characteristic of FIR cones

Ponderosa Pine

Blue Spruce

Fir Cedar

Douglas Fir

Western Cedar

Ponderosa Pine –

Should look very

familiar next time

you are around

Knox Mountain

A Renewable Resource

Properties:

LIGHT but very STRONG

These properties make it a

perfect building material

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v

=q3554jk38qU

Clear Cut Logging Erosion of Soil

We need trees but need to be careful in logging

practices and reforestation.