Plants that live in the rainforest have adapted in amazing ways to several very difficult conditions. This means that the plant has changed something in its "body" or "habits" to make it easier to survive in difficult conditions. There are several conditions they have had to adapted to. First, the soil of the forest floor is shallow. Also, the soil of the rainforest is not very rich, or easy to grow in. Next is the problem of very heavy rain which continues over a large part of the year. Finally, many plants of the rainforest are food for animals that live there. The biggest problem that rainforest plants have to adapt to is the lack of sunlight in the rainforest's lower levels. Plants have adapted to this problem in several ways. Many plants have very large leaves. The large leaf is helpful because it has a bigger surface area. The bigger surface area a leaf has, the more sunlight it can absorb. The canopy trees  adapt by growing to be 100 feet tall so that their leaves can grab all available sunlight. Other plants called lianas   have adapted by rooting themselves in the soil of the forest floor and growing up the trees until they reach the canopy layer. Still other plants, such as epiphytes, have adapted by growing directly on the trees' trunks and branches in the canopy and understory layers of the rainforest. An adaptation to the large amounts of rainfall that many rainforest plants have is called "drip tips". Their leaves are tapered  to a sharp point at the end. This allows water to run off the leaf quickly. There are many other adaptations that rainforest plants have made to their environment. These will be discussed in detail, as we investigate the plants of the rainforest! What can be inferred about rainforest plants?
They have to face dangers not only from animals but also from each other. Too little sunlight and too much water are the biggest problems they face. All of their adaptations have been investigated in detail. Different kinds of plants have different ways to absorb sunlight.