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  • Home
  • About the Park
    • Overview
    • Park Creation
    • Biogeography
    • Climate
    • Hydrology
    • Ecosystem Services
    • Maps
  • Visiting the Park
    • Overview
    • Eco-tourism
    • Ecozone
    • Park Treks
    • Fees and Rules
    • Access
    • Accommodation
  • World Heritage Site
    • Overview
    • Support WHS
  • Biodiversity & Conservation
    • Overview
    • Animals
      • Overview
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Invertebrates
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
    • Plants
      • Overview
      • Trees
      • Shrubs & Herbs
      • MEDICINAL PLANTS
      • Lichens
      • ALPINE ZONE
    • Hill Society
    • Education
    • Conservation of Biodiversity
    • Protection
    • Let Conservation Pay
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Biodiversity / Plants

Overview

The Great Himalayan National Park supports a great diversity of plant life thanks to its wide altitude range and relatively undisturbed habitats. From the lofty pines and spruces and the great, spreading horse chestnuts of the lower valleys, to the dense cushions and prostrate branches of the alpine herbs and junipers, the Park presents an endless variety of vegetation. Although some areas have been modified by grazing, this is one of the few areas of the Western Himalayas where the forests and alpine meadows can be seen in something approaching their original state.Schuchman3-apr2001

 

Only seventeen percent of GHNP’s geographical area is covered by forest, because of the preponderance of alpine areas beyond tree line such as meadows, rocky peaks and snow-bound areas. However, these barren heights are usually touched on only briefly, if at all, by the average trekker. Instead, most walking is within the forest and subalpine zones where the majority of the more than 425 genera and 125 families of higher plants have been recorded within the Park area occur.
Vegetation Zones

Vegetation occurs in well-defined altitude zones, beginning with the rather open subtropical forests of the lowest valley bottoms, grading into mixed forests of horse chestnuts, evergreen oaks, spruce, and deodhar (cedar). The upper temperate zone is dominated by the rusty-leafed Kharshu Oak, spruce and fir and then into a subalpine zone of birches, stunted firs and rhododendron bushes. Above that, all vegetation is reduced to grasses, herbs and low shrubs, such as juniper. This zonation effect is created by the effect of temperature on plant growth. For this reason, a given vegetation belt tends to be lower on north faces than on south faces. Likewise, moisture loving plants, such as bamboo, ferns and mosses, are more abundant on North faces, where the forest is usually very dense, while south faces support a more open forest with understory of grasses and shrubs.

Sub-Tropical Forest in Sainj Valley
Sub-Tropical Forest in Sainj Valley
Riverine Areas along Tirthan at Lower Altitude (2100 m)
Riverine Areas along Tirthan at Lower Altitude (2100 m)

The subalpine zone is richest in species, followed by the alpine and upper temperate zones. The following vegetation types can be recognized at various elevations in GHNP:

• Temperate broad-leaved forests (2,000 to 3,000m)
• Temperate conifer forests (2,000 to 3,000m)
• Upper temperate broad-leaved and mixed conifer forests (2,500 to 3,500m)
• Sub-alpine (Birch-Rhododendron) forests (3,000 to 3,500m)
• Alpine scrubs (3,500m and above)
• Alpine meadows (3,500m)
• Riverine forests (along the rivers)
• Temperate grassy slopes (2,000 to 3,000m)
• Temperate secondary scrub near village pastures and forest edges.

S.NO. Elevation(m) Vegetation Type
1. <2,000 Riverine forests (along the rivers); Secondary scrub and forest edges
2. 2,000-3,000 Temperate broad-leaved forests; Temperate conifer forests; Temperate grassy slopes
3. 2,500-3,500 Upper temperate broad-leaved and mixed conifer forests
4. 3,000-3,500 Sub-alpine (Birch-Rhododendron) forests
5. =3,500 Alpine meadows
6. 3,500 Alpine scrubs
Mixed Conifer Forest in Tirthan Valley
Mixed Conifer Forest in Tirthan Valley
Conifer Forests in Tirthan Valley 2,800m
Conifer Forests in Tirthan Valley 2,800m
Fir Forest in Sainj Valley
Fir Forest in Sainj Valley
Mixed Conferous Forest in Tirthan Valley
Mixed Conferous Forest in Tirthan Valley
Brown Oak Forest (Kharsu), Tirthan Valley, 3,100 m
Brown Oak Forest (Kharsu), Tirthan Valley, 3,100 m
A Pure Fir Forest in Sainj Valley
A Pure Fir Forest in Sainj Valley
Birch Trees in Upper Sainj Catchment, 3,300 m
Birch Trees in Upper Sainj Catchment, 3,300 m
Alpine Zone of Khandedhar at Jiwa Nal origin, GHNP
Alpine Zone of Khandedhar at Jiwa Nal origin, GHNP

What’s new

  • Wild Treasures Book Release
  • Vishv Dharohar Utsav 2022: Celebrating GHNP
  • My Retirement Celebration Trek
  • Sanjeeva and Payson’s GHNP Trek September 2018: Payson’s Impressions
  • Book on the Great Himalayan National Park released at the Goa Arts and Literature Centre

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