仙人掌花园

The 仙人掌花园 is a regional collection of cacti and succulents grouped by growth forms and specific genera. 当你穿过花园时，你可以看到几十个物种. 受欢迎的品种是仙人掌(多刺的梨和辣椒)。, Ferocactus(桶), 龙舌兰, 柱状仙人掌, Echinocereus(刺猬), 不久将包括哺乳动物(针垫).

仙人掌科(仙人掌科)

The enormous popularity of cacti among gardeners and plant collectors is surpassed only by that of roses and orchids. Their appeal extends far beyond their native habitat; there are legions of devotees in the eastern United States, 欧洲, 和日本. The desire to possess these strange yet beautiful plants supports hundreds of specialty nurseries; the largest shops grow and sell millions of plants annually. 仙人掌是游客前往美国西南部的原因之一.

大多数人一看到仙人掌就以为自己认识仙人掌，但他们常常错了. 所有的仙人掌都是肉质植物，但并非所有的肉质植物都是仙人掌. 龙舌兰, 马鞭, 沉香, and the succulent euphorbias (such as African milk trees) are among the swollen or spiny plants often mistaken for cacti. 然而, the term cactus refers to a particular family of plants defined by a distinctive flower pattern. 成为仙人掌, the plant must produce flowers with the following characteristics: many tepals (combined sepals and petals) that intergrade with each other; many stamens (usually hundreds), 和许多柱头裂片(很少只有三个). 如果一种植物没有这样的花，它就不是仙人掌.

大多数仙人掌是由许多种类的蜜蜂授粉的, 其中一些专门研究仙人掌. 仙人掌蜂都是独居的, but in some species the females congregate by hundreds of thousands at nesting sites to dig their individual nest burrows, 它们都密集地集中在几千平方英尺的面积上. Cactus pollen is packed into these burrows to feed the grubs, which the parents do not tend. 有些仙人掌由鸟、飞蛾或蝙蝠授粉.

风琴管仙人掌

许多, usually unbranched stems that arise from ground level readily distinguish an organ pipe cactus from a saguaro. 茎也更薄，有实心木质核. 植物通常长9到11英尺(2英尺).7-3.4米)高，但偶尔超过20英尺(6英尺).1 m). 粉白色的花, 从4月到8月生产, 天黑后开门，日出后不久关门. 果实上的刺在成熟时松动脱落. 多汁、甜的红色果肉含有许多微小的种子.

这种热带仙人掌比仙人掌对霜冻更敏感, so it is restricted to the warmest microhabitats at its northern limit in the United States. It is most often found on south-facing rocky slopes below 3300 feet (1000 m) in elevation.

采蜜蝙蝠是主要的传粉者和一些主要的种子传播者. 因为花儿在黎明时分凋谢, 昼行性动物不是重要的传粉者，因为它们是仙人掌. The fruits of organ pipe cactus are widely regarded as the second-best-tasting fruit of all cacti (after those of Stenocereus gummosus). 商业收获在一些大种群中是可行的, 水果在索诺拉和下加利福尼亚州的市场上出售.

Senita

Senita generally grows 10 to 13 feet (3 to 4 m) tall and has the same general form as organ pipe cactus. It differs in having stems with only 5 to 7 (rarely up to 10) ribs and very short spines on the juvenile stems, 赋予它们锐利的棱角. Mature (flower-producing) stems are quite different; they're densely covered with long, 易怒的, 灰色的刺. 粉红色，夜间花约一英寸(2).5 cm) in diameter emerge through the bristles from April through August; they emit an unpleasant odor. 其次是大理石大小的红色水果，果肉多汁.

Senita has a recently discovered mutualistic relationship with a moth that deliberately pollinates the flowers and uses the developing fruit as food for its larvae. 这种关系与丝兰及其传粉蛾的关系非常相似, and only the third such example of a tight pollination-related mutualism known in the world. Senitas的寿命很长. 1905年拍摄的下加利福尼亚的一些地方在20世纪90年代被重新审视, 几乎所有的参议员都还在.

鱼钩桶

这种仙人掌的桶状体很厚，通常有2到4英尺长.6-1.2米)高，有时超过10英尺(3米)。. 肋骨承受宽, 平, 强钩的中心刺以及几个具刚毛的放射状刺, 但这还不足以掩盖它的本质. 花被刺挤得不紧，开得很宽. Flower color is extremely variable; on most plants they are some shade of orange, 通常在每片花瓣上带有深色条纹. 大约10%的植物开黄色或红色的花. 它们的生产周期长达两个月, 八月和九月, 比其他木桶的花期长得多.

仙人掌蜜蜂(仙人掌科.给花授粉. The fruit persists until it is removed by animals and may remain on the plant for more than a year. Birds, 松鼠, and large mammals such as 鹿 and 一种野猪) are the main consumers of the fruit. 植物生长相当缓慢，大型标本已经有一个多世纪的历史了. 在培养, 补充水和肥料, they reach flowering size of 10 inches (25 cm) diameter and the same in height in about 12 years.

恩格尔曼刺梨

恩格尔曼刺梨 is a shrubby cactus forming hemispherical mounds up to 5 feet (1.高5米，宽2到3倍. Pad size varies with individual plants; the largest are over a foot (30 cm) long. (这些巨人可能是其他物种的杂交后代.)刺也是可变的. O'odham家族认识到这种多样性，他们将4到5个名字应用到不同的形式中. 这些花是黄色的, 直径约3英寸(8厘米), 在接近春季花期结束的五月开花. 它们可以持续一天，有些植物的幼苗在下午就会变黄. 多汁的果实成熟时(从植物到植物)从深紫色到红色不等. The specific status of this plant is still in dispute; it has been shuttled between Opuntia phaeacantha, O. discata和O. engelmannii 在过去的几十年里被不同的分类学家发现.

Engelmann and several other species of common, large prickly pears present an ecological mystery. 多汁可口的水果在七八月份大量成熟. 大多数的瓜罗水果, 在夏季早些时候也有类似的产量, 熟了就被吞吃吗. 但恩格尔曼刺梨的果实可以保存好几个月. 尽管它们被包括兔子在内的各种动物吃掉, packrat, 一种野猪), 鹿, 松鼠, 许多鸟类, 沙漠陆龟, 还有仙人掌甲虫, 水果太多了，他们吃不完. 此外, the fruits in the centers of large plants are out of reach of several of the wildlife species that would eat them; many of these fruits are still present in November fermenting and shriveling. 为什么一个工厂会在生产过剩的情况下浪费能源? 会不会有一个空缺，一个缺失的种子传播者? 又大又硬的种子提供了另一种可能的线索. It has been suggested that some prickly pears coevolved with the now-extinct giant mammals, 比如猛犸象和地懒. 这是一个有趣的理论, 如果证明是真的, further illust利率 the already-established fact that natural systems are anything but static.

海狸尾巴仙人掌

这个物种的新叶垫大多从旧叶垫的基部生长, 导致蔓生植物很少超过2个垫高. 块茎可长到6英尺(1英尺).直径8米). 脚垫是没有骨刺的, 但有许多像头发一样的舌状物，使乳穴看起来像毛毡的圆点. The incandescent-pink flowers appear from late February at the lowest elevations to May at the highest. 干果含有非常大的种子，即使对于一个机会.

Nearly everyone who has had a close encounter with this or other ãspinelessä opuntias would rather have dealt with spines. Glochids通常太小而看不见, and they cause prickling pain and intense itching as the barbs work deeper into the skin with every movement. Removing hundreds or thousands of them after falling into such a plant is an exhausting and tormenting task. 有些人在皮肤上刮掉, 这在一定程度上减少了刺激, 尽管这样会把针尖留在皮肤下面. 一种更好的治疗方法是轻轻地在患处的皮肤上粘上胶带. 另一种有效的治疗方法是在患处涂上一层白色胶水, 晾干后把它剥下来.

泰迪熊cholla

这种独特的辣椒有一个垂直的树干3到5英尺(1-1英尺).5 m) tall with densely-packed horizontal side branches on the upper foot (30 cm) or so. 较老的，较低的侧枝死亡和脱落. The joints are very densely spined; very little of the living surface can be seen through its armor. 它们的刺特别锋利，有很强的倒刺. 年轻的脊柱是黄色的，随着年龄的增长而变黑. Yellow-green flowers in spring are followed by spineless fruits that usually contain no fertile seeds.

分离的关节将很容易通过生根和分支产生新的植物. During the cooler months the terminal joints are detached by a slight touch by a passing animal, 甚至是强风. The joints that attach to animals may be transported considerable distances before being dislodged. 因为果实很少含有可存活的种子, 这个物种几乎完全通过这种无性繁殖过程繁殖. Many plants have 3 sets of chromosomes instead of the ordinary 2; these are usually sterile. In some localities they form nearly impenetrable stands that occupy as much as 2 square miles of land almost to the exclusion of other plants. 这些巨大的，吞没山坡的全草林可能是单一的(无性系)植物.