How Do Trees Survive Winter? Understanding the Principles of Tree Overwintering in One Article

A tree is a plant with a woody trunk and branches that can live for many years, providing shade and protection, with wood used for construction, charcoal for heating and cooking, and fruit for food, closely tied to human life. So, how do trees survive winter?

1. How Do Trees Survive Winter?

Trees of different types overwinter in different ways, mainly divided into deciduous trees and evergreen trees. Deciduous species reduce energy consumption by shedding leaves and drying shoot tips, entering a state of deep dormancy. Evergreen species reduce water evaporation through autumn leaf color changes and thickening of the waxy layer, entering a semi-dormant state, and also increase their internal sugar content to prevent frost damage.

2. Structure and Functions of a Tree

1. Roots

Roots are the nutritional organs of plants, usually located below the ground surface, responsible for absorbing water and dissolved ions from the soil, and also serving to support the plant and store and synthesize organic matter. Aerial roots growing above the ground surface (such as those of the banyan tree) are also a type of root.

2. Trunk

The trunk is not the skeletal part of the tree's body; it is mostly the source of timber, with the tree wrapped in bark on the outside. The trunk has growth rings that record age. The trunk is responsible for supporting the entire plant, and the xylem inside the trunk is responsible for transporting water and nutrients to aid photosynthesis and metabolism.

3. Leaves

Leaves contain chloroplasts and are the main site of photosynthesis in plants. At the same time, transpiration in plants occurs through the stomata of the leaves.

3. What Are the Types of Tree Reproduction?

1. Seeds

Apart from early tree ferns and their surviving relatives, which have spores, most modern trees are seed plants, and seeds can be dispersed by wind, self-dispersal, water and animals. Wind dispersal refers to lighter seeds or those with assisting wings, which are carried by wind to farther areas. For example: kapok, dandelion and other plants; self-dispersal occurs when the fruit matures and flings the seeds open, allowing the seeds to disperse. For example: wood sorrel and others; water dispersal applies to plants growing by the seaside or riverbanks, whose fruits fall into the water when ripe and are carried by water to distant places; because water can promote seed germination, such plants are mostly protected by the intact fruit; animal dispersal can be divided into two types, one being animals biting and eating the fruit, and the other being attachment to animals' bodies. Fruits eaten by animals are mostly relatively heavy and edible, and the indigestible seeds are dispersed through excretion. For example: passion fruit, guava. Fruits that attach to animals mostly have barbs that can hook onto animals' bodies. For example: hairy beggarticks.

2. Cuttings

Cuttings are one of the propagation methods used for plants. Simply put, it involves inserting a section of a plant into a certain medium to make it take root and sprout, then grow, flower and bear fruit. It is the most effective way to obtain characteristics identical to the original plant, and it is also used when a certain branch of a plant has mutated (such as a thornless rose) and this characteristic is to be preserved.

3. Grafting

Grafting is one of the propagation methods used in horticulture, in which a part of one plant is fixed onto another plant so that their tissues heal together and develop into an independent individual. The mother plant is called the rootstock, and the grafted young shoot is called the scion.

Trees play an immeasurable role in nature, so everyone should not cut them down indiscriminately.