What are Cacti and Succulents? And some history...

Well, Cactus family is part of big Succulent family. All are able to store water in fleshy tissue in their stems, leaves or roots. Most have developed distinctive features to help reduce water evaporation and withstand their hostile habitats. They can even cease active growth and become dormant in severe conditions (e.g., extremely hot summer in desert). The bizarre appearance is the result of unique evolution in such environment.

Interesting observation 1: why cacti have ribs rather than smooth surface to minimize water loss?

Ribs could be deep or shallow, depending how much water it store in the stem. Pretty cool, isn't it? If it was smooth, then it would have wrinkles when losing water ---- not cool at all!

Interesting observation 2: cacti have areoles, pad-like buds, from where spines, shoots and flowers grow. Sometimes they are not easily visible. This is the difference between cacti and other succulents.

Interesting observation 3:  nearly all cacti and some other succulents have spines, which are modified leaves! Spines vary greatly in shape, texture and length. You may see some having woolly spines (white hair), fish-hook like ones, teeth-like ones, needle-like ones, and so on. Although spines provide a defense against predators, their main function is to condense moisture so that is drips on the nearby ground .

Interesting observation 4: succulents have unique leaves to minimize water loss and avoid sunburn: downy or powdery as sunscreen; waxy to reflect strong light. They also have glossy stem or bark-like stem.

Some history:


Originally, Cacti grew only on the American continent. Succulents were native to many regions from Europe to the Far East, although most concentrated in southern and eastern Africa.

The first private collections of cacti and succulents were created in the 17th century by wealthy owners. By 1835, the German Prince Salm-Dyck had one of the best collections in Europe. In 1830, one ariocarpus named after him was sold for 1,000 francs, which far exceeded the value of the plant weight in gold.

Best known gardens:

Huntington Botanical Garden, south California
Jardin Exotique in Monaco
Palmengarten in Frankfurt, Germany
the collection at Zurich, Switzerland
the oldest surviving collection at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Brisbane, Australia

Jardin Exotique in Monaco


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