Cacti are best known as xerophytes, i.e. plants that are very drought tolerant. In addition, cacti belong to the biological group of succulent plants that retain water reserves in their succulent stems and leaves. However, it would be wrong to assume that all succulents are cacti. This group includes leaf succulents, which store water in the leaves of succulent succulents (aloe, agave, hawkweed, stonecrop), stem succulents – thistle, stonecrop, etc. Due to their external similarities, they are sometimes confused with cacti, so do cactus need water? This article has the answer for you.
Where do cacti grow?
Cacti have a very wide distribution area, but they are mainly considered to be typical inhabitants of the deserts of North and Central America. Mexico and the southern United States are typical areas of cactus distribution. Mexico and cacti are generally inseparable concepts. All known forms of cactus can be found here; both dwarf and giant specimens; representing a wide diversity of species. Cacti have long provided food and clothing for the Mexican farmers here. Since ancient times, the cactus has been one of the symbols of Mexico’s national emblem. And the name Tenochtitlan (the ancient capital, where today’s Mexico City is located) means “Land of the Sacred Prickly Pear”.
Do cacti need water?
When it rains, cacti absorb water through their highly branched but shallowly buried root system, storing it in their stems. Their leaves have changed and become spiny. The stems become angular so that they can contract more easily when water is lost.
In times of drought, cacti shrink considerably in size, losing 60-70% of their water. The beginning of rainfall quickly restores the plant. The ability to build up water reserves varies from cactus to cactus – they vary in size and shape. But in nature, there are some surprising species that can store up to 3,000 liters of water on their stems. It is these heavy, giant nutmegs and Mexican bulbous cacti, weighing more than a penny, that has been aptly named botanical bonsai by prominent academicians. Carnegie plants can be used all year round without additional water inputs.
Covered with a thick cuticle, cacti are very water-efficient. In many species, the cuticle is covered with a waxy layer that takes on a variety of hues when exposed to sunlight. At the same time, they tolerate high temperatures very well and are the most heat-tolerant flowering plants on earth. Some cacti are said to tolerate temperatures as high as 62 degrees or even slightly higher without much harm. All cacti are covered with prickles of varying sizes and colors. They can even live for many years in a closed flask with moist soil.
All these characteristics develop gradually in the plant due to the need to adapt to the arid and hot climate of its habitat.
Cacti in bloom
When these spiny balls and columns bloom – it is an unusual and striking spectacle, a true symphony of color and color.
The flowers of the serpentine cactus “Queen of the Night” are known for their splendor and color. As you know, every plant has its own soul and its own fairy tale. And this magical cactus has one. Everyone was invited to the ball of the queen of flowers, the rose, including the ugly serpentine cactus, which was ashamed of its thorny ugliness and clumsiness against the magnificent backdrop of royalty.
It tolerated without complaint all the ridicule and taunts directed at its address. Huddled in a corner, he could not take his admiring eyes off the queen. Night fell, the ball was in full swing, and then, as it should be in a fairy tale, a miracle happened. The assembled flowers did not understand at once what had happened.
A mysterious, gentle, translucent light began to slowly emerge from the corner where the rejected cactus was sitting, and it grew brighter and stronger. In front of the astonished public, a flower of fabulous, indescribable beauty opened up: a huge, pure white flower with golden stamens.
Everyone froze, dumbfounded with admiration. This drowsiness lasted until dawn, when, as the sun rose, the flower closed and everyone saw that this was the cactus they had joked about so venomously. But now no one thought it was ugly and disgusting.
Everyone was impressed by the miracle he had performed. Since then, this cactus has been known in all the languages of the world as the Queen of the Night.
With proper care, many cacti are a joy to grow and bloom. The most common and abundant flowering plant in the home is the leafy cactus.
The flower of a cactus consists of a pedicel, sepals that turn into petals, stamens, and pistils (male and female). The flowers appear on the stems. In several groups, heads (capitulum means head) are formed on the stems – special areas where flowers are formed (for example in the genus Melocactus). The size of the flowers is very diverse.
Thus, the already mentioned Selenicereus (Queen of the Night), forms a flower the size of a plate (up to 32 cm in diameter) with many petals. The cactus Hylocereus Polybius has flowers up to 40-45 cm long. Other cacti form very small ones, less than a centimeter in diameter, with few petals (4-10).
The flowers of cacti are mostly single-petaled. They are radially or bilaterally symmetrical. All known colors and shades can be found in the coloring of cactus flowers, except blue and black.
The flowering capacity of cacti varies: some produce two or three flowers per year, others may be completely covered with flowers. Some can bloom all year round (under certain soil nutrients, humidity, and light), while others bloom for only a few hours. Some flowers open and close depending on the day and night, but others remain for only one night. Some emit a subtle fragrance, while others have no fragrance at all. Some flowers open wide, while others look more like narrow tubes.
The part of the flower from which the fruit will develop is located below the petals, i.e. cacti have a lower ovary – a sign of their family kinship. Withered petals can often be found on mature fruit.
After fertilization, cacti produce a wide variety of fruits in shape, color, and structure. They range from large, juicy berries the size of lemons to small, dry boxes with seeds. The fleshy, juicy fruits of cacti are usually edible. As a result, the fruit of Eriocereus is surprisingly sweet and tasty. The brightly colored fruits of the cactus will decorate your collection just as well as the flowering plants.
Spines and pubescence
The distinctive features of the Cactaceae are the small pores (from the Latin area, space; reduced form) on the stems – circular spots of different diameters in which there are radial and central spines with pubescence; most cacti have flowering buds and new shoots. The upper and lower parts of the areola have different functions: the upper part is a potential growing point where buds and new shoots of branched species appear; the lower part produces spines.
The prickles and various pubescence of cacti are very different in appearance and color. The spines are special remnants of the leaves, which gradually shrivel up in dry climates, turning the veins into stiff tissue. Their purpose is double protection: both to prevent the cactus from being eaten by animals and as a means of preserving the water supply and replenishing it since they actively absorb water from the air at night.
The prickles and pubescence reduce the intensity of light and prevent various burns on the surface of the plant. Cactus spines are long (up to several tens of centimeters) or short (from 1 mm); they are sharp and straight, as well as hooked, undulated, and curled. On the surface of the plant, they are arranged both individually and in bunches.
In some cacti, the central spines are much longer than the radial ones. The color of the prickles makes cacti attractive at any time of the year and popular in collections. Even on a single plant, it is possible to have multicolored prickles. The range of colors is unusually diverse; red and white, yellow and gold, red and brown, transparent and almost colorless.
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