46 OUTLINE OF PLANT GEOGRAPHY 



Western and Central Europe 



From the Baltic on the north to the great southern barrier of 

 the Pyrenees, Alps and Carpathians, the whole of western and 

 Central Europe constitutes a natural botanical province through- 

 out which are found a large number of characteristic species. 



Within this area there is a good deal of difference in topography 

 and climate, but the mountains, such as the Vosges and Harz are 

 only of moderate height, never rising to regions of perpetual snow, 

 and not forming barriers to the distribution of plants. 



The west coast, and the British Islands enjoy a comparatively 

 equable climate, with much less severe winters and hot summers 

 than the more easterly parts of the area. The effect of the proxim- 

 ity of the ocean, and the prevailing westerly winds, together with 

 the trend of the Gulf Stream, is evident in the very equable cli- 

 mates of the west coasts of the British Islands, southern Iceland, 

 and Norway, which have extraordinarily mild winters considering 

 their high latitude. The contrast between the cool summers and 

 mild winters of the south of England and west Ireland, and the 

 hot summers and frigid winters of Poland is sufficiently striking. 



Much of Europe was originally forested but with the develop- 

 ment of the dense populations now occupying it, practically all 

 of the original forest has disappeared except in such remote regions 

 as northern Russia or in the higher mountains. 



The forests of central Europe are much poorer in species than 

 those of temperate North America. Probably the most wide-spread 

 tree is the Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris), which extends from the 

 sub-arctic zone to the Alps and Pyrenees, and is pretty generally 

 distributed through the whole of central and western Europe and 

 the British Islands. The Norway spruce (Picea excelsa) and silver 

 fir (Abies pedinata), are also very widely spread. Less abundant 

 is the yew (Taxus baccata), and the common juniper, which can 

 hardly rank as a tree, is perhaps the most wide-spread of all co- 

 nifers. 



Much of the forest is composed exclusively of deciduous species. 

 First in importance are two oaks, Quercus pedunculata and Q. 

 sessiliflora, sometimes regarded as simply varieties of a single 

 species, Q. robur. Oak forests are characteristic of a large part of 

 western and central Europe and the British Islands. 



