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Cacti and Succulents – what is the difference?
Well – all cacti are succulents – but not all succulents are cacti.
All plants need water to grow. Succulents are any plants that are adapted to store water. This means that they often live in very dry places or places where there is only rainfall at long intervals.
Cacti are stem succulents, that is they have fleshy stems where they store water. Other succulents might have fleshy leaves or sometimes large swollen roots.
- There are over 2,000 different types of cacti.
- The tallest cactus can grow to 20m.
- Aloe vera is a succulent plant which is used in many cosmetic products.
- The succulent agave can have a flower spike which is 12m tall.
- Some succulents hide themselves by looking like the stones around them.
- Cacti can live for hundreds of years.
- The smallest is only 12-16mm across.
- Cactus flowers can be red, orange, yellow, white, pink or magenta but never blue.
- Some succulents are known as window plants. In the wild they grow flat to the ground, and have windows in the tops of their leaves to let the light in.