What are some ways that plants evolved to live on the grasslands?
Grasslands are so because there is not enough water, or enough depth of fertile soil to support large plants. Grasses have a large surface area of leaf relative to the total amount of plant material which maximizes sunlight absorbtion and respiration in the plant. They also evolved to not require high amounts of nutrients. They can also go dormant in dry spells and spring back to life with some water. They are also vigorous growers when chewed down to the dirt by grazers. Other plants that have evolved to live in the grass lands are generally still small with shallow but far reaching root structures. These root structures take advantage of the rainfall the best, because the rain does not penetrate very deep, more roots at the surface will be wet rather than having roots penetrate deep where there is little water and nutrients. These other plants have also evolved to require less water and nutrients than most plants. The soils in grasslands are very striated, and the fertile soil does n
