Plants cover almost any ground. We then speak of a plant cover or vegetation. Plants give us pleasure not only with flowers, as shade or comfortable underground. They are in reality our basis of life as the organisms that prepare energy-rich food for all subsequent life by means of photosynthesis from water, carbon dioxide and sunlight. Without them, our planet would be a desert.
There are species that adapt to each location: mosses adhere to the surface of stones, microscopic algae float in the water, aquatic plants take root at the bottom and bloom above the water level, some stand in the water and form reed beds in our lakes, others tolerate extreme drought. The picture is dominated by trees, which grow very tall and old with the ingenious support structure of wood. There seem to be no limits to nature's inventiveness, especially when it comes to plants.
