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In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous (/ d ɪ ˈ s ɪ dʒ u. ə s /) [1] [2] means "falling off at maturity" [3] and "tending to fall off", [4] in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, after flowering; and to the shedding of ripe fruit.
A broad-leaved, broad-leaf, or broadleaf tree is any tree within the diverse botanical group of angiosperms that has flat leaves and produces seeds inside of fruits. It is one of two general types of trees, the other being a conifer, a tree with needle-like or scale-like leaves and seeds borne in woody cones. [1]
Temperate deciduous forests are characterized by a variety of temperate deciduous tree species that vary based on region. [6] Most tree species present in temperate deciduous forests are broadleaf trees that lose their leaves in the fall, [8] though some coniferous trees such as pines (Pinus) are present in northern temperate deciduous forests. [6]
In terms of biodiversity, the only comparable temperate deciduous forest regions in the world are in central China, Japan, and in the Caucasus Mountains.Both the Appalachians (along with the neighbouring Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests ecoregion) and central China contain relict habitats of an ancient forest that was once widespread over the Northern Hemisphere.
The trees of the Eastern Temperate Forests provide food, shelter, and a suitable habitat for countless species of both flora and fauna; they yield lumber, fuel, recreation, and aesthetic enjoyment to not only the people who live in this region, but also those who visit and enjoy products produced from the resources gleaned from these vast forests.
[12] [13] [42] Below the spruce-fir forest, at around 1,200 meters (3,900 ft), forest composition shifts in favor of deciduous trees such as American beech, maple, birch, and oak. [13] American rhododendron is the dominant understory shrub throughout the deciduous layer but is only occasionally present in spruce-fir forests.
Marcescence is most obvious in deciduous trees that retain leaves through the winter. Several trees normally have marcescent leaves such as oak (Quercus), [5] beech (Fagus) and hornbeam (Carpinus), or marcescent stipules as in some but not all species of willows . [6]
The Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests is an ecoregion of the temperate broadleaf and mixed forests biome, as defined by the World Wildlife Fund.It consists of mesophytic plants west of the Appalachian Mountains in the Southeastern United States.