Some plants growing in areas which experience frequent floods produce seeds which float. The presence of a forest affects climate at the local level. For instance, forest vegetation shades the forest floor. This reduces soil and water temperature in the summer and can reduce the amount of water lost from the soil by evaporation. Houses surrounded by trees are cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter because of the insulation provided by the trees and the protection from wind that a stand of trees can offer.
Rain is intercepted by forest vegetation before it hits the soil surface.
Rain drips off the vegetation and hits the soil surface more gently. Once the rain contacts the forest floor, the litter layer absorbs some of the moisture and slows down the rest as it moves into the soil. Forest Soils Forest soils provide the surface in which a forest grows. Soil is something that many people never really think much about. To many people, soil is nothing but dirt.