Taiga refers to Temperate Needle Leaf or Coniferous forests. These forests occur in temperate areas (mostly northern hemisphere, parts of New Zealand), with precipitation both as snow and rain (variable). In India, these forests are distributed between 1700 - 3000 meter altitude in the Himalayas. Winters are chilly while summers are pleasant. Marshes have Cotton grass and Sphagnum. Vegetation consists of gymnosperms with cone-shaped canopy. They have needle-shaped leaves which persist on plants for 2-7 years. The trees are evergreen.