Tundra
In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract." There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine tundra, and Antarctic tundra. In tundra, the vegetation is composed of dwarf shrubs, sedges and grasses, mosses, and lichens. Scattered trees grow in some tundra. The ecotone (or ecological boundary region) between the tundra and the forest is known as the tree line or timberline.
See more at: http://zurcaledworld.blogspot.com/2011/09/wonders-of-world.html#sthash.d0VzFi6i.dpuf
See more at: http://zurcaledworld.blogspot.com/2011/09/wonders-of-world.html#sthash.d0VzFi6i.dpuf
The tundra is not a plants best place to grow because perma frost (the permanently frozen soil) that is about a finger-length under the surface in the summer months prevents the plants' roots from growing as long as they need. Because of the fact that plants can not grow their roots out, most of the tundra's plants are low shrubs and trees like dwarf willows and birches less than knee high. Mosses are also another type of vegetation that grow on the tundra, but the vegetation that has populated more than any other is the lichen which is a cross between fungus and algae.