Madagascar is a gigantic garden with a great variety of plants the great part of which is specific to the Great Island . 80 % of the species are endemic .
An out of the ordinary flora, which development has been favoured by the synthesis of various factors notably the climate and reliefs . Nevertheless this plant wealth that surprises by its originality, its variety and its beauty is threatened by the climate ravages and men disastrous actions . Four great vegetable formations can be distinguished : dense forests , steppes and savannahs , the Savoka and the southern Bush .

The east dense forest

One of the rare vestiges of Madagascar primitive forest , the eastern forest covering no more than about 5 millions hectares on a total area of 58 millions hectares is constituted of a compact group of overlapped species with foot squeezed and thick and persistent leaves which summits exceeding 25 m retain the light . Its area and its density are nevertheless impressive such as Nosy Mangabe in the region of Maroantsetra where occur many high density tree species with slender and high trunks. The rather bare under -woods are composed of lianas , tree ferns and parasitic plants. Tropical essences abound there : rosewoods , brazilian rosewoods , ebony .
Always in the oriental part of the island , all along the coast , one discovers a marsh vegetation composed of pandanus , small palm trees with sharp leaves and forked roots emerging from the ground, reeds , rushes and various aquatic plants

The west dense forest

As for the West dense Forests , they have a caducifoliea character, so that their physiognomy completely change according to the seasons . The water factor , the grounds nature impose a great diversity of species : various leguminous …….

The Savoka

In substitution of the primary forest, the " savoka "has developed , in a different way according to the regions . The Savoka , a secondary vegetation , result from zones destroyed by the fire . The felling and the slash and burn culture are the origin of a gigantic erosion that touches ¾ of the island surface. The forest reconstituted in the form of low vegetation transforms little by little into savannah when it is cleared and burnt once again . They count especially beautiful squeezed bamboo plantations , Ravenala , the famous traveller tree , Philippia and Helichrysum.
Coconut trees , breadtrees loaded of large green fruit , laurels in flowers and the India almond trees can be discovered along the beaches

The savannah of the west

90 % of the island area became savannahs or steppes . This part of the island had to be covered originally by a less dense and less high clear forest than the oriental one . Now the trees that compose this savannah form forest more or less planted with trees can be found only in some disseminated reserves such as Ankarafantsika . Apart some baobab and palm trees as “satrana” , the area is overgrown by valueless fodder high herbs . Steppes and savannahs of graminaceous formation occupy considerable areas . In the Centre and in the East , it concerns narrow and xeromorph leaves species , while in the West they have higher striped leaves

The bush

The last Malagasy natural component is the Southwest thorny bush : an original formation synonymous of dense thickets that comprises an impressive list of endemic species : didieraceae , aloes , cactees , euphorbs , thorny plants , woody , reduced foliage or fleshy species aphylles , all of these plants which main resource is the dew are resisting to the dryness .