Dryad Arbor does count as a land for your turn. When you play Dryad Arbor, it enters the battlefield as a land, not as a creature. This means that it doesn’t use the stack and it can’t be responded to. It’s not considered a spell, so it doesn’t have a mana cost or any timing restrictions.
When you play Dryad Arbor, you simply put it onto the battlefield tapped, just like you would with any other land. It doesn’t have any special requirements or conditions for it to enter the battlefield. It’s treated just like any other land card in your deck.
One important thing to note is that Dryad Arbor has the subtype “Forest.” This means that it counts as a Forest in addition to being a creature land. So, you can tap it for green mana just like you would tap any other Forest. This can be useful if you need that extra mana to cast spells or activate abilities.
Because Dryad Arbor is a land, it also counts as your land play for the turn. This means that if you play Dryad Arbor as your land for the turn, you won’t be able to play an additional land from your hand. This is an important strategic consideration when deciding whether or not to play Dryad Arbor.
In terms of gameplay, Dryad Arbor can be a versatile card. It can provide you with an extra creature on the battlefield, which can be useful for attacking or blocking. It can also be sacrificed or targeted by spells or abilities that specifically target lands, creatures, or both. This can make it a target for removal spells or abilities from your opponents.
I hope this explanation clarifies how Dryad Arbor functions as a land. It’s a unique card that can provide both mana and a creature presence on the battlefield, making it a valuable asset in certain strategies and deck builds.