Forests in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia cover an area of more than 2.7 million ha of land, with varying densities and vegetation types. These forests are distributed in several locations, including the forests of Sarawat Mountains, Shura forests on the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf coast, in addition to some forest sites with diverse vegetation around valley streams, rivers, basins, and reefs throughout the Kingdom.
According to the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, the highlands of the mountainous regions of Hijaz and Asir encompass the largest number of forests in the Kingdom. The height of these mountains in Taif Governorate is estimated at about 2,000 m above sea level. The altitude increases further south until the mountains reach more than 3,000 m in Asir, whose slopes are steep towards the west, thus forming deep valleys that feed the Tihama plains. In that area, the slopes towards the east are moderate, with long valleys crossing their territories.
Juniper trees are mostly dense on the peaks of the mountains of Asir, southwest of the Kingdom. Wild olive trees, or al-Atm trees, as known locally, also grow in density in the highlands that do not exceed 2,000 m. Trees grow better on the eastern side of these steep mountains. On the western steep side, forests grow in the form of narrow belts where the soil is deep.
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