Random Tree Fact
Did you ever wonder how sunshine and nutrients get to the forest floor? Trees need lots of sunshine and water, but most of this is taken up by the canopy trees. So the little seedling trees and plants on the ground must struggle for light all the time? Actually they are cared for by the bigger trees and a fungus that grows on their roots. In a forest, the roots of trees and plants are very close together, and covered with a fungus called Mycorrhizas. The fungus is very similar to lichen, and acts as a link between the canopy trees and the small trees and plants on the forest floor. It feeds off the nutrients on the larger tree roots and the smaller trees feed off of it. The smaller trees grow ever higher trying to reach the canopy where all the good “food” is. Usually they get their chance when an older tree falls. The forest floor is flooded with light in one area, and the seedling trees nearest have a sudden growth spurt, trying to fill the gap in the canopy.