Desert Plants
Desert plants are a diverse group of flora that have adapted to the harsh heat and arid conditions of the desert environment. With shared characteristics that have developed in response to the desert, desert plants survive and prosper through natural strategies that include being succulent, drought tolerant, and drought resistant. Often associated with the landscaping term xeriscaping, or dry landscaping, indigenous desert plants are known to be easy to take care of due to the low-maintenance inherent to their drought tolerant capabilities. Desert plants popularly include a range of cacti, succulents, wildflowers, trees, shrubs and grasses.
Plants grow in the desert through the implementation of deep roots to obtain water into the ground below the soil’s surface. Plants also store water in their roots, stems, and leaves. Plants grow in the desert only by adapting to the changing temperatures and extreme weather.
Desert plants can survive in such extreme conditions due to the adaptation within their roots, stems, as well as leaves that helps them store water while also decreasing any water loss they might experience. These adaptations help desert plants stay hydrated to grow healthy in both hot and cold climates.
Desert plants typically bloom at night as it is when the desert plants get pollinated. Night-flying insects and moths help with the pollination of desert plants which as a result helps increase their reproduction. Desert plants also are not typically colorful due to the scarcity of water.
