Spain is the world's fifty-second largest country and Europe's fourth largest country. The vegetation of Spain is varied due to several factors including the diversity of the relief, the climate and latitude. Spain includes different phytogeographic regions, each with its own floristic characteristics resulting largely from the interaction of climate, topography, soil type and fire, biotic factors. Compared with other West European countries, the proportion of land devoted to agricultural purposes in Spain is low. In the 1980s, about 5 million hectares were devoted to permanent crops: orchards, olive groves, and vineyards. Another 5 million lay fallow each year because of inadequate rainfall. Permanent meadows and pastureland occupied 13.9 million hectares. Forests and scrub woodland accounted for 11.9 million hectares, and the balance was wasteland or was taken up by populated and industrial areas. Most of the natural forests of the Iberian Peninsula have long since disappeared because of erosion and uncontrolled harvesting for firewood, timber, or the creation of pastureland. A reforestation program had been under way in Spain since 1940, for meeting market demand for forest products, controlling erosion, and providing seasonal employment in rural areas. Eucalyptus trees, Lombardy poplars, and a variety of conifers were emphasized because of their fast growth. The value of Spain's forest products in 1985 was US$302 million. Pine trees grown in the north and the northwest as well as oak and beech trees grown in the Pyrenees accounted for most of the total. Commercial forestry products produced in Spain also include cork, turpentine, and resins. (Wikipedia)
