- Rain forests host many small, shrublike and vining plants.rainforest image by Egor Ukoloff from Fotolia.com
The warm climates in tropical rain forests offer ample amounts of heat for plant life to flourish. Most plants in the rain forest are gigantic, but this environment also features tiny plants. Because rain forest trees are tall and form a canopy, not many plants grow on the ground, as there isn't enough sunlight. Thus, most of the tiny plants in the rain forest are vining or epiphytes and rely on the trees for exposure to sunlight and support. - The Singapore daisy originates from Central America, but can also be found in the rain forests of Queensland, Australia. This flowering weed plant has leaves that are 1 to 3 inches long and feature a glossy green coloring. The flowers on this plant are typically yellow and have width of 1 inch. As an invasive species in Australia, the Singapore daisy overruns other plants natural to the area. This plant spreads via rooting at the nodes of its stems or by depositing seeds into the ground.
- Lianas are vine plants and are found in rain forests in South America and Southeast Asia. These vine plants come in many shapes and sizes. Some lianas are only a few feet long, while larger, wooded lianas grow up to length of 3,000 feet. All lianas root from the ground in rain forests and the smaller lianas resemble small shrubs. Lianas depend on other plants for growth, including trees, so most of the energy they obtain goes toward leaf production, rather than structural support. However, these plants are not parasitic, as they have their own roots.
- Similar to lianas, epiphytes are small plants that grow on other plants in the rain forest for support. These plants don't act as parasites, as they don't rely on host plants for energy. Epiphytes receive their energy via photosynthesis. Nonaquatic types of epiphytes draw moisture from rain that's landed on their host plant. Some of these plants grow roots, but this is primarily for attachment purposes. Examples of epiphytes include orchids and ferns. These plants grow in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and South America.
- These flowering shrubs are found on the ground of rain forests in Africa and Australia. Although some of these shrubs grow more than 40 feet in height, many gardenia plants only reach 2 to 3 feet in height. The flowers on gardenia are white and have a width of 5 inches. Gardenia flowers bloom throughout the spring and summer. The plant's leaves are dark green. On the smaller varieties, leaves grow up to 2 inches long.
