In the north of Russia, from Chukotka to KolaPeninsula, stretches tundra zone. It is a continuous strip and occupies as much as 14% of Russian territory. In this zone is very harsh climatic conditions. Winter lasts up to 8 months, and the remaining time falls on a cool and short summer. And in July (the hottest month), the average temperature is only + 10 degrees. Nobody is surprised by frost or snow that fell in the middle of summer. And in these harsh conditions, plants and animals of the tundra manage to survive.
Почти на всей необъятной территории тундры permafrost is common. And the soil in these places thaws only in summer and then to a small depth - 1.5–2 meters maximum, and often even less. And below this depth is constantly frozen ground. And this permafrost on plants in the tundra has a strong effect. Moreover, this influence is by no means positive. After all, such a close bedding of frozen ground makes it impossible for the roots to grow deep into. They are forced to be content with only the top layer of soil. Also, the permafrost does not allow water to leak down. And this contributes to the emergence of swamps.
More tundra plants have to adapt tospecial light mode - the polar day. Here the sun rises low in summer, but it shines around the clock. And thanks to this, the local plants during the short growing season have enough time to get enough light, at least not much less than plants of middle latitudes. The intensity of light in the tundra is also higher, due to the purity and transparency of the atmosphere of this zone. And local plants have perfectly adapted to such a long day and are developing well.
Thus, in the tundra the most favorable forvital activity is the top layer of soil. There is also enough heat here and in the lowermost layer of air that adjoins the earth itself. And these two layers can be measured with just a few centimeters. Therefore, it is not surprising that many tundra plants are short and literally spread on the ground. And their root systems grow mainly horizontally, almost without going deep. And in these latitudes many plants grow, the leaves of which are collected in a rosette, as well as any creeping shrubs and shrubs. They simply “learned” to use the heat located on the ground itself with the maximum benefit, and at the same time fight with strong local winds.
And the main plants of the tundra are mosses and lichens.There are a lot of species here, and they often cover huge spaces with a solid carpet. Most of these mosses and lichens are associated not only with the tundra. For example, such green mosses as chilocomium, pleurocium, kukushkin flax or lichen such as reindeer moss are also found in forests. But there are also species of these plants, which can be found only in the tundra. All of them perfectly tolerate the climate of the tundra. These plants can overwinter both under snow cover and without it.
But the vegetation cover of the tundra is not somonotonous. In some places, the moss and lichen carpet is diluted with moss swamp. In other places, mainly shrubs grow - alpine bearberry, kuropatochya grass, blueberries, and Veronica. And closer to the forest-tundra zone there are scrub thickets consisting of low birch and willow trees. Also closer to the forests and in the river valleys is the permafrost layer a little deeper. The winds in these places are also not so severe. And here you can meet trees such as larch and birch. But these tundra plants have a very pitiful appearance, their height is no more than 6 meters.
And in the summer in the tundra quite a shortvarious flowers such as forget-me-nots, polar poppies, bluebells, dandelions, buttercups, saxifrage and others are flourishing. The plants growing here are mostly evergreen and perennial. They no longer need every year to lose precious time for growth and development, as well as for forcing foliage. But they grow slowly, gaining a few millimeters a year. Also closer to the fall here are ripening various berries, such as cloudberries, princess, lingonberries, cranberries and blueberries.
