forest
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CG: n

CT: According to the FAO, a forest covers more than 0.5 hectares (about 1.24 acres) of land with trees higher than five meters (just over 16 feet) and a canopy cover of over 10%.1 Forests also include areas with younger trees expected to reach a canopy cover of at least 10% and tree height of at least five meters and do not include land predominantly used for agriculture. Forests provide habitats for nearly 5,000 amphibian species (or 80% of all known species), 7,500 bird species (75% of all birds), and over 3,700 mammals (68% of all mammal species).

The U.S. National Vegetation Classification system considers forests to be vegetation dominated by trees at least six meters (19 feet) tall producing a majority of closed canopy, usually between 60% and 100% cover.3 However, they suggest that forests that have temporarily lost their cover due to a major disturbance like disease or windthrow are still considered forests.

S: Treehug – https://www.treehugger.com/woods-vs-forest-5182505 (last access: 20 April 2025).

N: 1. Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin forestis (silva) unenclosed (woodland), from Latin foris outside. The first known use of forest was in the 13th century.

2. forest, complex ecological system and natural resource in which trees are the dominant life-form.

– Types of forest:

  • Forests can occur wherever the temperatures rise above 10 °C (50 °F) in the warmest months and the annual precipitation is more than 200 mm (8 inches). They can develop under a variety of conditions within these climatic limits, and the kind of soil, plant, and animal life differs according to the extremes of environmental influences.
  • In cool high-latitude subpolar regions, forests are dominated by hardy conifers such as pines (Pinus), spruces (Picea), and larches (Larix). In the Northern Hemisphere, these forests, called taiga, or boreal forests, have prolonged winters and between 250 and 500 mm (10 and 20 inches) of rainfall annually. Coniferous forests also cover mountains in many temperate parts of the world.

  • In more temperate high-latitude climates, mixed forests of both conifers and broad-leaved deciduous trees predominate. Broad-leaved deciduous forests develop in middle-latitude climates, where there is an average temperature above 10 °C (50 °F) for at least six months every year and annual precipitation is above 400 mm (16 inches). A growing period of 100 to 200 days allows deciduous forests to be dominated by oaks (Quercus), elms (Ulmus), birches (Betula), maples (Acer), beeches (Fagus), and aspens (Populus).

  • In the humid climates of the equatorial belt are tropical rainforests, which support incredible plant and animal biodiversity. There heavy rainfall supports evergreens that have broad leaves instead of needle leaves, as in cooler forests. Monsoon forests, which are the deciduous forests of tropical areas, are found in regions with a long dry season followed by an intense rainy season. In the lower latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere, the temperate deciduous forest reappears.

  • Forest types are distinguished from each other according to species composition (which develops in part according to the age of the forest), the density of tree cover, type of soils found there, and the geologic history of the forest region. Altitude and unique meteorological conditions can also shape forest development (see cloud forest and elfin woodland).

3. Ecosystems; Silviculture: forest.

  • An area managed for the production of timber and other forest produce, or maintained under woody vegetation for such indirect benefits as the protection of watersheds, the provision of recreation areas, or the preservation of natural habitat.

4. Ecosystems; Silviculture; Botany: forest.

  • a community of trees and associated organisms covering a considerable area; utilizing oxygen, water, and soil nutrients to attain maturity, and reproduce itself; and capable of furnishing people with useful products and services.
  • The forest is a complex ecological system dominated by trees, which form a buffer for the earth against the full impact of the sun, wind, and precipitation. Whatever the type of forest … the trees that constitute it provide special environments, which in turn affect the kinds of plants and animals that can live within the forest.

5. The difference between forests and woods comes down to canopy cover and tree density. While forests are known for thicker canopy cover (the amount of land covered by the tops of trees), woods usually have a more open canopy and sparser tree density, keeping the soil drier and unshaded. Although both refer to distinct ecosystems covered in trees and home to a wide range of wildlife, woodlands are often referred to as the ecosystems in between dense forest and open land.

The distinction between woods and forests actually goes back to medieval times, specifically when a “forest” referred to a plot of land big enough to preserve large game for royal hunting parties. Today, the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the U.S. National Vegetation Classification both offer similar perspectives on how to differentiate between the two.

6. Collocations:

  • Adjective: dense, thick | impenetrable | dark | native, natural | ancient, primeval, virgin | rain (also rainforest), tropical | coniferous, deciduous | beech, birch, pine, etc.
  • Quant.: stretch, tract a large stretch of virgin forest.
  • Verb + forest: plant | chop down, clear, cut down, destroy Forest is being cleared to make way for new farming land. | be covered by/in/with Much of Europe was once covered in forest.
  • forest + verb: stretch Thick forest stretched as far as the eye could see.
  • forest + noun: tree | floor | land | fire.
  • Preposition: in a/the ~ They got lost in the forest. | through a/the ~ We slashed our way through the dense forest.
  • Phrases: the edge/heart/middle of the forest.

7. Cultural Interrelation: We can mention a novel and two movies respectively.

  • The Forest (2000) is a historical novel by Edward Rutherfurd.
  • The Emerald Forest (1985) is a film directed by John Boorman; The Blair Witch Project (1999) is a movie directed by Daniel Myrick & Eduardo Sánchez.

S: 1. MW – https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forest (last access: 20 April 2025). 2. EncBrit – https://www.britannica.com/science/forest (last access: 20 April 2025). 3 & 4. TERMIUM PLUS (last access: 20 April 2025). 5. Treehug – https://www.treehugger.com/woods-vs-forest-5182505 (last access: 20 April 2025). 6. OCD – https://www.freecollocation.com/search?word=forest (last access: 20 April 2025). 7. GR – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/92159.The_Forest (last access: 20 April 2025); IMDb – https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089087/?ref_=ls_t_1, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185937/?ref_=ls_t_2 (last access: 20 April 2025).

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CR: biome, canid, ecology, forest fire, jay, jungle, prairie, savanna, silviculture, sparrowhawk, steppe, taiga, tropical rainforest, tundra.