Shrubland

Shrubland, scrubland, scrub or brush is a plant community characterised by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It may be the mature vegetation type in a particular region and remain stable over time, or a transitional community that occurs temporarily as the result of a disturbance, such as fire. A stable state may be maintained by regular natural disturbance such as fire or browsing. Shrubland may be unsuitable for human habitation because of the danger of fire. The term "shrubland" was first coined in 1903.

Shrubland species generally show a wide range of adaptations to fire, such as heavy seed production, lignotubers, and fire-induced germination.

Botanical structural form

In botany and ecology a shrub is defined as a much-branched woody plant fewer than 8 m high and usually with many stems. Tall shrubs are mostly 2–8 m high; small shrubs 1–2 m high: subshrubs less than 1 m high.