Plants Make Life on Earth Essay

Additionally, plants can house animals or provide prey animals with cover and camouflage to prevent them from being over-hunted. They also help create a more sustainable ecosystem. The presence of plants moderates the temperature and mitigates the effects of the wind and sun. The plants in the rainforest keep the rainfall patterns in balance with the rest of the earth's ecosystem ("The Biology of Plants," Missouri Botanical Gardens, 2009).

Even when plants are not directly consumed for food, they can help sustain human beings. Plants hold the soil together and guard against erosion. Plant compost acts as fertilizer for the soil. Plants can be used as medicine in the form of herbs and other medicinal plant derivatives, or as products in the form of rubber, burlap, and cotton. Plants were and are the first source of warmth -- wood is necessary to heat an old-fashioned stove and to build a campfire.

Without plants, the world as we know it is virtually inconceivable.For humans to live in a world without plants would require a kind of science fiction scenario -- food, air, and shelter would all have to be completely manufactured through the use of technology. Sadly, despite this reality of our dependence on plants, many people fail to treat plants with respect. The debt we owe to plants is an important reminder not to ignore the perils of deforestation, global warming, and endangered plant species.

Joke: Q: Why does my brother need to take a biology class?

A: I caught him planting Cheerios in the backyard! He thought they were 'doughnut seeds.'

Works cited

"The Biology of Plants." Missouri Botanical Gardens. November 15, 2009.

http://www.mbgnet.net/bioplants/earth.html

Farabee, M.J. "Photosynthesis." Online Biology Book. June 17, 2007. November 15, 2009.

http://www.emc.maricopa.edu/faculty/farabee/BIOBK/BioBookPS.html

"My Pyramid." U.S. Department of Agriculture. November 15, 2009.

http://www.mypyramid.gov/.....