A cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 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, ranging from Patagonia in the south to parts of western Canada in the north, with the exception of Rhipsalis baccifera, which is also found in Africa and Sri Lanka. 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.
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.
The Crassulaceae, also known as the stonecrop family or the orpine family, are a diverse family of dicotyledon flowering plants characterized by succulent leaves and a unique form of photosynthesis, known as Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM). Flowers generally have five floral parts. Crassulaceae are usually herbaceous but there are some subshrubs, and relatively few treelike or aquatic plants. Crassulaceae are a medium size monophyletic family in the core eudicots, among the order Saxifragales, whose diversity has made infrafamilial classification very difficult. The family includes approximately 1,400 species and 34–35 genera, depending on the circumscription of the genus Sedum, and distributed over three subfamilies. Members of the Crassulaceae are found worldwide, but mostly in the Northern Hemisphere and southern Africa, typically in dry and/or cold areas where water may be scarce, although a few are aquatic.
Crassula is a genus of succulent plants containing about 200 accepted species, including the popular jade plant. They are members of the stonecrop family (Crassulaceae) and are native to many parts of the globe, but cultivated varieties originate almost exclusively from species from the Eastern Cape of South Africa.
Crassula tetragona is a succulent plant native to Southern Africa. It is widely distributed from the Orange River boundary of Namaqualand to beyond the Kei River in the Eastern Cape. "Tetragona" comes from the phyllotaxy of the leaves. It is popularly named the "miniature pine tree" among ornamental plant enthusiasts, for its popular use as a "pine tree" in Bonsai.
In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word succulent comes from the Latin word sucus, meaning "juice" or "sap".
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.
Crassula arborescens, the silver jade plant, silver dollar plant, beestebul, Chinese jade, money plant, or money tree, is a species of succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae. It is an endemic plant of the Western Cape, South Africa. It is a 2 to 4 ft succulent shrub. It has round gray "Silver Dollar" leaves. It blooms in summer, with white to pink flowers. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant for use in drought tolerant and succulent gardens, and in container gardens. It is also suitable for growing indoors as a houseplant.
Crassula capitella, is a perennial succulent plant native to southern Africa.
Crassula ovata, commonly known as jade plant, lucky plant, money plant or money tree, is a succulent plant with small pink or white flowers that is native to the KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa, and Mozambique; it is common as a houseplant worldwide. Much of its popularity stems from the low levels of care needed; the jade plant requires little water and can survive in most indoor conditions. It is sometimes referred to as the money tree; however, Pachira aquatica also has this nickname.
Haworthia parksiana is a species of succulent plant native to the Western Cape of South Africa. Regarded as the smallest and one of the rarest types of Haworthia in the wild, it is thought to be most closely related to Haworthia floribunda. It grows in rosettes up to about 4 centimetres (1.6 in) in diameter, and is often hidden in the ground.
Crassula spathulata is a creeping, succulent ground-cover, indigenous to the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, where it is found in leaf-litter on rocky ridges, often around the edges of forests.
Crassula pellucida is a creeping, succulent ground-cover, or low-growing, spreading succulent shrub. It is native to eastern and southern Africa, ranging from Kenya and Angola to South Africa.
Gordon Douglas Rowley (1921–2019) was a British botanist and writer specialising in cacti and succulents.
Pseudolithos migiurtinus is a species of succulent plant in the genus Pseudolithos. Native to Somalia, it is akin to other species in the genus in that it grows in arid environments and is a small, leafless plant that looks somewhat like a stone, hence the name. It can range from green to ochre in color. This species is up to 120 millimetres (4.7 in) high and 65 millimetres (2.6 in) around, can be either cubiform or cylindrical in form, and may grow small branching columns in older plants.
Pseudolithos caput-viperae is a species of succulent plant in the genus Pseudolithos. It is a small, leafless plant up to 15–40 millimetres (0.59–1.57 in) tall and either green or brownish. First discovered and described in the 1970s by botanists John Jacob Lavranos and Renato Bavazzano, it is native to Somalia. The seedlings of the plant are identical to Pseudolithos migiurtinus, but start to branch after a year, making this the only member of Pseudolithos that is not just a single squat stem. Its Latin species name means "snake head".
Crassula ericoides is a species of succulent plant in the genus Crassula native to South Africa. Growing in the fynbos ecosystem of South Africa, C. ericoides somewhat resembles a heather, growing into an upright shrub with bare lower stems and yellow flowers at the tips.
Crassula namaquensis is a species of succulent plant in the genus Crassula native to South Africa. Easily confused with some forms of Crassula tecta and Crassula sericea, this species has rounded to elongated leaves that are usually blue, covered in fine hairs, and form clumps.
Haworthia reticulata is a species of succulent plant native to the southwestern Cape Provinces of South Africa. The species has several varieties, including var. hurlingii which is the smallest at up to 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide.
Dracaena singularis is a species of succulent plant in the genus Dracaena native to Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania. Mistakenly placed in the genus Boophane at first, by the 1980s the plant was corrected to be in the genus Sanseviera, until that entire genus was merged with Dracaena. The species is named singularis since at its mature size, it has only a single leaf up to 1.8 metres (5.9 ft) in length, while in a juvenile state it displays small rosettes of several leaves.
