Temperate deciduous woodland

Temperate Deciduous Woodland 

This biome is a high energy biome second only to the Tropical Equatorial Rainforest in productivity level. This biome is found mainly in the Northern hemisphere in countries such as the UK and North America. 

Climate ::

This biome is found in areas where summer temperatures range from 15 to 20 degrees Celsius, whilst the cool winters don't generally drop below 0 degrees Celsius. Rainfall is moderate here-around 1000-1500 mm annually and may fall throughout the year. The good summer temperatures and long days mean that the ecosystem is a very productive one.

Soil ::

Brown earth soil is the soil type found in this biome. It is usually deep, well drained and fertile and supports a range of fauna in the woodland. Decomposers in the soil break down the thick layer of leaf litter to create rich dark brown humus which earthworms and rodents then mix into the soil horizons. This mixing helps to aerate the soil and unless precipitation is significantly heavy, there is little leaching of nutrients out of the soil. The soil is therefore slightly acidic and ideal for plant and tree growth. However, this also means that soil in this biome is ideal for agricultural use and many forest have been cleared for this purpose in countries such as the UK and China meaning this biome if even more important globally.

Vegetation ::

Deciduous plants shed their leaves in Autumn in order to reduce transpiration when less moisture is available since most of the water will be frozen during the winter period. This helps protect branches from snow and ice damage also. With limited sunlight and water in the Autumn time, the leaves of the trees no longer make chlorophyll since the water supply becomes blocked off by the trees. This causes them to turn the reddish orange colour during Autumn and Winter. The trees have deep roots so to break up rocks below ground level. The break up of these rocks allows minerals to enter the soil and to be absorbed by the woodland flora above.

The canopy is composed of the dominant species such as oak and other tall deciduous trees like Elm, Beech and Sycamore. They average around 20m in height and develop large crowns of broad and thin leaves to absorb as much sunlight as possible. 

The shrub layer is composed of smaller trees like Rowan, Holly , Hawthorn and Hazel and they compete for light under the tall canopy trees. 

Beneath this is the field layer which is composed of brambles, bracken and ferns and flowering plants such as Bluebells. Wild flowers such as Bluebells flower before the leaves of the taller trees grow so they can photosynthesise before being covered by the towering canopy trees. This bodes well for attracting tourists to managed woodlands such as New Forest in Hampshire and Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire because the scenery is beautiful and these forest are open to the public. 

Sherwood attracts around 500,000 visitors per year to show off its famous Major Oaks. The largest with a trunk circumference of 10m and being over 1000 years old.  At ground level mosses and lichens colonise the layer among a thick leaf litter from fallen deciduous leaves. 

Pictures sourced from ::

bbc.co.uk

blueplanetbiomes.org

bbc.com

smh.com.au

geogonline.org.uk