A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word cactus derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek word κάκτος (káktos), a name originally used by Theophrastus for a spiny plant whose identity is now not certain. Cacti occur in a wide range of shapes and sizes. They are native to the Americas, with the exception of Rhipsalis baccifera, which is also found in Africa. Cacti are adapted to live in very dry environments, including the Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth. Because of this, cacti show many adaptations to conserve water. For example, almost all cacti are succulents, meaning they have thickened, fleshy parts adapted to store water. Unlike many other succulents, the stem is the only part of most cacti where this vital process takes place. Most species of cacti have lost true leaves, retaining only spines, which are highly modified leaves. As well as defending against herbivores, spines help prevent water loss by reducing air flow close to the cactus and providing some shade. In the absence of true leaves, cacti's enlarged stems carry out photosynthesis. Cacti are native to the Americas, ranging from Patagonia in the south to parts of western Canada in the north—except for Rhipsalis baccifera, which also grows in Africa and Sri Lanka.
Euphorbia is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae, not just to members of the genus.
Desert Botanical Garden is a 140-acre (57 ha) botanical garden located in Papago Park, at 1201 N. Galvin Parkway in Phoenix, central Arizona.
Matucana is a genus of cacti, containing approximately 20 species of mostly globular plants. The genus is only known from Peru, mostly along the Marañón River.
The University of California Botanical Garden is a 34-acre botanical garden located on the University of California, Berkeley campus, in Strawberry Canyon. The garden is in the Berkeley Hills, inside the city boundary of Oakland, with views overlooking the San Francisco Bay. It is one of the most diverse plant collections in the United States, and famous for its large number of rare and endangered species.
Echinocereus is a genus of ribbed, usually small to medium-sized, cylindrical shaped cacti, comprising about 70 species native to the southern United States and Mexico in very sunny, rocky places. Usually the flowers are large and the fruit edible.
Obregonia, the artichoke cactus, is a monotypic genus of cacti, containing the species Obregonia denegrii. The species is endemic to the state of Tamaulipas in Mexico.
The Arizona Cactus Garden, or, officially, Arizona Garden, also known as the Cactus Garden, is a small botanical garden specializing in cactus and succulents. It is located on the campus of Stanford University, in Stanford, California, USA. It is open to the public daily without charge.
Panchkula (PKL_Haryanvi) is a planned city and district headquarter in the Panchkula district, part of the Ambala division in Haryana, India. The origin of the name Panchkula came from the place where five irrigation canals meet. At present, it forms a part of an adjoining area to the Chandigarh, Mohali and Zirakpur. It is approximately 4 km (2.5 mi) southeast of Chandigarh, 105 km (65 mi) southwest of Shimla, 44 km (27 mi) from Ambala and 259 km (161 mi) northeast of New Delhi, the national capital. It is a part of the Chandigarh capital region or Greater Chandigarh. The Chandigarh-Mohali-Panchkula metropolitan region collectively forms a Chandigarh Tricity, with a combined population of over two million.
Pinjore is a town in Panchkula district in the Indian state of Haryana. This residential 'township', located close to Panchkula, Chandigarh, is set over 1,800 feet above the sea level in a valley, overlooking the Sivalik Hills. Pinjore is known for Pinjore Gardens, Asia's best 17th Century Mughal garden, and the Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) factory.
The Volunteer Park Conservatory is a botanical garden, conservatory, and Seattle landmark located in Seattle, Washington at the north end of Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill.
Astrophytum asterias is a species of cactus in the genus Astrophytum, and is native to small parts of Texas in the United States and Mexico. Common names include sand dollar cactus, sea urchin cactus, star cactus and star peyote.
The Desert Garden Conservatory is a large botanical greenhouse and part of the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, in San Marino, California. It was constructed in 1985. The Desert Garden Conservatory is adjacent to the 10-acre (40,000 m2) Huntington Desert Garden itself. The garden houses one of the most important collections of cacti and other succulent plants in the world, including a large number of rare and endangered species. The 3,000-square-foot (280 m2) Desert Garden Conservatory serves The Huntington and public communities as a conservation facility, research resource and genetic diversity preserve. John N. Trager is the Desert Collection curator.
Gymnocalycium mihanovichii is a species of cactus from South America. The most popular cultivars are varied mutants which completely lack chlorophyll, exposing the red, orange, or yellow pigmentation. These mutant strains are often grafted onto the hylocereus cactus, and the combined plant is called a "Moon Cactus". Moon cacti are commonly grown as houseplants and are also known as Ruby Ball, Red Cap, Red Hibotan, or Hibotan cacti.
The Huntington Desert Garden is part of The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California. The Desert Garden is one of the world's largest and oldest collections of cacti, succulents and other desert plants, collected from throughout the world. It contains plants from extreme environments, many of which were acquired by Henry E. Huntington and William Hertrich in trips taken to several countries in North, Central and South America. One of the Huntington's most botanically important gardens, the Desert Garden brought together a group of plants largely unknown and unappreciated in the beginning of the 1900s. Containing a broad category of xerophytes, the Desert Garden grew to preeminence and remains today among the world's finest, with more than 5,000 species in the 10 acre garden.
A cactarium or cactuario is a garden dedicated to the planting of cacti. While they generally specialize in collecting cacti, they can also include other desert plants such as sabla, agaves or Crassulaceae, although this would better be termed "xeriscaping".
Escobaria sneedii is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Sneed's pincushion cactus and carpet foxtail cactus. It is native to the Chihuahuan Desert, where it occurs in scattered locations in New Mexico, Texas, and Chihuahua. Some plants occurring in Arizona may be included within this species. Botanical authors do not necessarily agree on the circumscription of this species. Most will agree at this point in the research, however, that there are two varieties of Escobaria sneedii, and that both are rare and endangered. The plant is popular with cactus enthusiasts and dealers because of its often petite size and tolerance for moderately cold climates. They have been overharvested from their natural habitat, the main reason why the two varieties, var. sneedii and var. leei, have been federally listed as endangered and threatened, respectively.
Sclerocactus wrightiae is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Wright's little barrel cactus and Wright's fishhook cactus.
Sukkulenten-Sammlung Zürich, literally succulent plant collection of the city of Zürich, is a botanical garden in the Swiss municipality of Zürich. It also houses a botanic library, a herbarium and the International Organizations for Succulent Plant Research (IOS).
Biodiversity Park, Visakhapatnam, is a botanical garden, an ex situ conservation park, first of its kind in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. The park is located in the premises of the Rani Chandramani Devi Government Hospital. It extends over 3 acres (1.2 ha). Dolphin Nature Conservation Society (DNCS), Visakhapatnam, a registered, eco-friendly, non-government organization, has maintained it for 13 years and is now maintaining it in collaboration with the hospital and Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Region Development Authority. The park was inaugurated on 5 June 2002. This park has more than 2,000 species of plants. and has recorded visits by 60 species of birds and 105 species of butterflies. The park has become a "living laboratory" for education, awareness and research for students, and botanists, zoologists and researchers.
