Root-system depth determines which species survive coastal gales

Evidence

But where winds are too strong redwoods and many other trees cannot grow because their shallow root systems cannot stand the strike of the great storm winds. Thus, close to the sea, the redwoods do not grow, but the closed-cone pine trees and the cypresses grow because they have deep tap roots that hold against the gales. Fortunately fogs can go around corners that winds cannot, and so reach the redwoods far inland up the valleys and canyons. — Vinson Brown, Reading the Woods, 163

Categorization

• XREF: Species-position versus root morphology reasoning is reusable in interpreting near-coast Minnesota lake and dune communities. — connects to: Storm survival reflects species wood traits, not just tree strength — Vinson Brown, Reading the Woods: Seeing More in…, 180; Fungus-weakened root systems create wildlife refuges that hunters cannot penetrate — Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac: With Other…, 267; Coral growth form determines which species best recolonize small clearings — S. T. A. Pickett and P. S. White, eds., The Ecology of Natural Disturbance and…, 912 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Storm survival reflects species wood traits, not just tree strength #qualifies (0.75) — Vinson Brown, Reading the Woods, 180