Plant communities flourish or perish depending on their environmental conditions.
As these conditions change, the types of plants that make up the community may also change. This process is called succession. In a stable community, the plants are well suited to the amount of water, nutrients, and sunlight available to them. As the availability of these resources change, the conditions may favor a different set of plants, and these plants will become more abundant. This causes a shift in the makeup of the plant community.