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Epiphytes however, can generally be categorized into holo-epiphytes or hemi-epiphytes. A holo-epiphyte is a plant that spends its whole life cycle without contact with the ground and a hemi-epiphyte is a plant that spends only half of its life without the ground before the roots can reach or make contact with the ground. [8]
Nepenthes sp. Misool growing as a lithophyte in Raja Ampat, New Guinea. Lithophytes are plants that grow in or on rocks.They can be classified as either epilithic (or epipetric) or endolithic; epilithic lithophytes grow on the surfaces of rocks, while endolithic lithophytes grow in the crevices of rocks (and are also referred to as chasmophytes). [1]
These plants, normally woody perennials, grow stems into the air, with their resting buds being more than 50 cm above the soil surface, [10] e.g. trees and shrubs, and also epiphytes, which Raunkiær later separated as a distinct class (see below). Raunkiær further divided the phanerophytes according to height as Megaphanerophytes ...
Epiphytic bacteria are bacteria which live non-parasitically on the surface of a plant on various organs such as the leaves, roots, flowers, buds, seeds and fruit. In current studies it has been determined that epiphytic bacteria generally doesn't harm the plant, but promote the formation of ice crystals.
A large number of epiphytes occur, such as hanging moss (Antitrichia curtipendula) settling on trees and various oceanic lichen genera (such as Chaenotheca, Chaenothecopsis, Collema, Fuscopannaria, Lichinodium, Lobaria, Nephroma, Parmeliella, Polychidium, Pseudocyphellaria, Sphaerophorus, and Sticta). [21]
Epiphytes are plants which grow above the ground, on top of other plants. They are not planted in the soil and are not parasitic (i.e. they do not feed on other plants; however, some types still damage their host in various ways). By growing on other plants, the epiphytes can reach to the light better or where they can avoid struggling for light.
Strangler figs are hemiepiphytic – they may begin life as epiphytes but after making contact with the ground they encircle their host tree and "strangle" it. This usually results in the death of the host tree, either through girdling or through competition for light. [ 3 ]
More than one-third of a tropical forest's vascular plants are epiphytes which species of Tillandsia are part of. Their contribution to the environment's carrying capacity allows for terrestrial fauna like earthworms to thrive in the treetops. [19] Temperature is not critical, the range being from 10 to 32 °C (50 to 90 °F).