Desert Plants List

Have you ever wondered about the plants that grow in the desert? What are the different desert plants and their adaptations. Read this article on desert plants list and get to know about plants of the desert.

There are many types of plants that inhabit the Earth. In fact, almost one third of the Earth’s surface is covered with forests. Plants even survive in deserts, which have extreme climates. The plants that grow in the desert are known as xerophytes. The plants in the desert have a different adaptive technique according to the climate of the desert. There are different desert plants that adapt to the hard, rocky and dry soil of the desert. Contrary to a common misconception that only a few plants are able to survive the harsh climate, desert is one of the most bio-diverse ecosystems on Earth, with many species of plants and animals co-existing. Before we see about the desert plants list, let us take a look at the methods of adaptation in plants of the deserts.

Adaptations of Desert Plants

The plants growing in one desert may differ from those of the other. Given below are a few adaptation techniques in the plants of the deserts,

• The plants in the desert have no leaves or rather they have modified leaves, resembling thorns, to reduce the loss of moisture from the surface of the leaves.
• Many plants like the cactus have thick and succulent stems with a pulpy interior to store water.
• Some plants have a stunted growth to reduce the loss of water and conserve food and nutrients.
• There are fine hair like structures on the stems of plants like cacti to reduce the loss of water through the process of evaporation.
• Some plants like living stone only expose a few leaves to the surface while the rest of the plant is underground.
• Many of the desert plants begin their growth as seeds, as seeds tend to survive without water. Only when it rains in the desert, these seeds sprout and produce tiny saplings. But these do not survive for long as many of the desert plants sprout, mature, produce flowers and then perish.

List of Desert Plants

Given below is a short, desert plants list with their features

• Saguaro Cactus: This cactus is mostly found in Sonoran Desert in the U.S. state of Arizona. These cacti are large in size and have an expandable stem that helps them to store water. During the rains, water is absorbed by a large network of roots which is then stored in the ribbed, expandable stems. This cacti has a long lifespan and grows very fast.
• Old Man Cactus: This cactus is given the name old man cactus since it has fine, white hair on its stems. Old man cactus is a native of Mexico and grows in clusters of unbranched stems. The silvery, white hair present on the stems of the cacti reflect the sun, thus preventing excess loss of water. There are also tiny yellow spines that are not visible to the naked eye.
• Tumbleweed: Also called Russian thistle, tumbleweed is found in Eurasia and is a fast growing weed. Young plants are bright green in color and grow close to the soil surface. As the plant grows it develops ridged branches with thin needle like spikes. After maturity the tumbleweed becomes a dull green with transparent flowers and tiny leaves.
• Desert Saltgrass: This plant grows in salty areas along the Great Salt Lake. This is a perennial plant that grows up to a height of 16 inches. The plants produce yellowish florets that contain seeds. The leaves are hairy, sharply pointed and grow along the stem.
• Barrel Cactus: The barrel cactus grows mostly in the North American deserts. These cacti are shaped like a barrel and grow up to a height of approximately one meter. The cacti has many ribs with long, yellowish spines that store water during the rains. When the climate is hot and dry, these spines shrink in size as an adaptive technique. Also read about barrel cactus adaptations.

For more information read:

• Desert Plant Life
• Sahara Desert Plants
• Desert Vegetation
• Desert Biome: Animals and Plants

This was all about the desert plants list. You can even grow a variety of desert plants as ornaments in your garden or in pots.