Why trees grow in some areas but not others?

Question

My grandfather owns 90 acres of bush behind his house and my extended family owns another 200 all together. The property is covered by thick trees in the Boreal Shield part of Ontario. There is a system of ATV and Snowmobile trails out there at at one point you come to a clearing where the thick forest turns into a field filled with wildflowers that is about an acre in size.  My question is: Why don't trees that surround the area grow into this field, why did they not grow and why does the field not get grown in upon. In the middle of the field there is several large trees in the centre, what causes them to grow while the rest of the field is barren.

Whatever it is, it makes for a beautiful picture:

http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/7908/001oja.jpg

saffronesque · Accepted Answer

There could be an environmental condition (nutrients, soil composition, amount of moisture, temperature) that inhibits the growth of trees.  Perhaps the field was exactly that, a field that has been cultivated for many years keeping the trees in check.  There appear to be immature trees at the edge of the field which could indicate the trees are beginning to invade the meadow.

Anonymous · Answer

the acidity of the ground, soil, and water would be part of the process. Also, rock formation around the area can have an effect on growth.

Why trees grow in some areas but not others?

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