THE BASIC FEATURES OF ZHUXI VEGETATION IN WESTERN HUBEI

Zhuxi is in the west part of Huhei, situatcd at 31°31′—32°29′N, 109°29′—110°08′E. It belongs to evergreen and deciduous broadleaved mixed forest. There are 863 taxa (including subspecies and varieties) in 483 genera, 127 families of seed plants (in which 42.59% are woody plants) in this area. The floristic geographical elements of the flora in Zhuxi are very complex and interlacked. They are widely in connection with the flora of the world, with an ancient floritic origion as well as the majority of temperate elements and a lot of tropical elements. The decisive elements of the flora in this area belong to the subtrapics various in types of vegetation. The chief vegetation-types in Zhuxi can be divided into 7 vegetation-type groups, 10 vegetation-types and 49 formations.Yunwuxi is located in the central South of Zhuxi. The data of the investigation indicated that Yunwuxi was a typical and representative place in the vegetation of Zhuxi, and one of the best and complete conservative areas of the Northern subtropical zone. There are many rare and threatened plants and endemic species in which some relatively gather into one formation in Yunwuxi. Yunwuxi is a comprehersive and valuable place to be protected and an ideal place to set up natural protective area.