Melbourne Area Plant Communities & Structure Types
On this page plant communities are described in 2 ways.The first is a floristic description. This is when all the types of plants species growing together in a variety of sites can be recognized as being a community. The plant community is identified by particular plants or plant species being consistently present.
The second method is by a structure method. This method layers the vegetation types using the canopy cover as a measure. It distinguishes, for example between Rain-forest, with a closed canopy & Open-woodland, with wider spaces between the tree tops. Definitions can then be established, such as Open-Woodland, Tall Closed-forest & Open & Closed-heath. The uppermost canopy, regardless of its height, controls the solar energy available to the vegetation layers beneath it.
Melbourne's native plant communities can be divided into 18 different structural types,
classified by canopy height & density of canopy foliage.Some plant communities relevant to the Glen Eira region, classified by structure include :-
The above is structural approach to define ecological boundaries Plant communities are rarely defined by straight lines, but more commonly by broad overlapping zones,with numerous plants species inhabiting one or many of the different structural types.
For a more comprehensive description of Melbourne's Flora communities see 'The Flora of Melbourne' ... A guide to the Indigenous Plants of the Greater Melbourne area', produce by the Society for Growing Australian Plants Maroondah Inc.