Home Garden
# Home & Garden >> Plants, Flowers & Herbs >> Outdoor Growing

Monongahela Cliff Plants

Plants found on cliffs are usually the same type plants found on nearby flatter lands, but the special challenges of cliff-dwelling leads to interesting adaptations. On exposed cliffs where the temperatures drop, the wind constantly blows and the moisture is sometimes limited, plants associated with boreal habitats are right at home. Limestone cliffs, such as those found in the Monongahela region, are full of deep cracks accommodating roots, and dripping springs keeping them watered. The resulting ecosystem is complex, variable and species rich. The Monongahela River runs through northern West Virginia and Pennsylvania is named for the crumbling cliffs lining much of its length.

  1. Trees

    • Trees on cliffs often display a banner shape due to the wind.

      Trees found on cliffs are rarely as tall and lush as their forest counterparts. In Pendleton County, West Virginia, stands of Northern white cedar grow on the area's limestone cliffs. Northern red oak found in the West Virginia's Dolly Sods region show a special leaf adaptation allowing it to transpire less water.

    Shrubs

    • Ribes, or currants, can be found on dripping limestone cliffs.

      Shrubs commonly found on the Monongahela cliffs include juniper, blueberry and blackberry. In damper cliff areas, elderberry, witch hazel and currant grow. None are as large as their ground-dwelling varieties, but they are an important source of food for birds and insects.

    Flowers

    • The contrast of flowers against harsh rocks lends beauty to cliffs.

      A cascade of wildflowers down a cliff face is a lovely sight, and in many species are on Monongahela cliffs. Violas, coltsfoot and white snakeroot grow on damper cliffs. The alien ox-eye daisy takes root even on the drier slopes. The bleeding heart, a common garden plant, grows wild on the cliffs here.

    Lichens and Mosses

    • Lichens withstand the world's harshest environments.

      On very exposed portions of cliffs where there is little water or soil, lichen and moss thrive. Lichens are usually gray, and their adhesion to rock is so strong that they begin decaying the rock and form soil pockets under the layers of lichens. Mosses are emerald green and usually found in areas where there is much moisture and shade.

Previous:

Next:

Outdoor Growing
  1. Pigments Found in Green Plants
  2. Tomato Diseases Found in Aquaponic Grown Tomatoes
  3. What Bugs Are Found in Broccoli?
  4. What Plants Would Be Found in Colonial Gardens?
  5. Small Bugs Found on Rosemary Plants
  6. What Two Plants Can Be Found in a Temperate Rainforest?
  7. Where are Sage Plants Commonly Found?
  8. Herb Plants Found Naturally in the Wild
  9. Sun-Loving Foliage Plants
  10. Desert Plants in Zone 7
  11. Purple Majesty Plants
  12. Yucca Plants Found in Ohio

Home Garden © https://www.98905.com