barrel cacti
Ribbed desert succulents
Barrel cacti are round or cylindrical desert plants with prominent ribs and hooked spines, native to the American Southwest and Mexico.
The name describes their shape—squat and wide like a barrel.
Several genera share this common name, including *Ferocactus* and *Echinocactus*.
They store water in their thick stems and can survive extreme drought.
The barrel cactus near the trailhead had turned to flower.
- spinesStiff, pointed projections
- plantBotanical organism
- cylindricalCircular in cross-section
- ribbedWith raised parallel lines
- taprootsMain downward-growing plant roots
succulent · flower · Sonoran Desert · Arizona desert · deserts · xerophyte · botanical · desert landscaping · pollination · drought-tolerant · desert survival · slow growing · indigenous art · Baja California · traditional medicine · ornamental plants · Mojave Desert · Northern Mexico
barrel cactiwater lilies
Aquatic flowering pond plants
hydrophytes · aquatic plants · rainforest plants · wetland plants · lotus
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