Rock Garden, Water Garden UNIT 4 CACTI AND SUCCULENTS GARDEN and Indoor Garden Structure 4.0 Objectives 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Natural Habitats of Cacti and Succulents for Garden 4.2.1 Desert plains Cacti and Succulents 4.2.2 Mountainous Deserts Cacti and Succulents 4.2.3 Jungles Cacti and Succulents 4.3 Essential Equipments and Material for Developing a Cacti and Succulents Garden 4.3.1 Important Tools for Garden 4.3.2 Top- Dressing Material for Garden Plants of Cacti and Succulents 4.4 Essential Environmental Factors for Cacti and Succulents Garden 4.4.1 Light and Air 4.4.2 Temperature 4.4.3 Humidity 4.5 Growing Media / Soil for Cacti and Succulents Garden 4.5.1 Type of Soil Media for Cacti and Succulents 4.5.2 Top - Dressing Material for Garden Plants of Cacti and Succulents 4.6 Garden Settings for Cacti and Succulents 4.7 Plantation of Cacti and Succulents in Garden Beds 4.7.1 Creating a Desert look in the Garden 4.8 Cacti and Succulents Plants for Garden 4.8.1 Cacti 4.8.1.1 Cacti Type – 25 ft. and above Height 4.8.1.2 Cacti Type – 15 ft. to 24 ft. Height 4.8.1.3 Cacti Type – 5 ft. to 14 ft. Height 4.8.1.4 Cacti Type – 3 ft. to 5 ft. below Height 4.8.1.5 Cacti Type – 11 inches to 24 inches Height 4.8.1.6 Cacti Type – 1 inch to 10 inches Height 4.8.2 Succulents 4.8.2.1 Succulents Type – 15 ft. to 30 ft. Height 4.8.2.2 Succulents Type – 10 ft. to below 15 ft. Height 4.8.2.3 Succulents Type – 5 ft. to below 10 ft. Height 4.8.2.4 Succulents Type – 2 ft. to below 5 ft. Height 4.8.2.5 Succulents Type – 13 inches to 23 inches Height 4.8.2.6 Succulents Type – 1 inch to 12 inches Height 4.9 Maintenance of Cacti & Succulents Garden 4.9.1 Irrigation or Watering 4.9.2 Fertigation of Cacti and Succulents Garden 4.9.3 Handling of Cacti and Succulents 4.9.4 Pruning 4.9.5 Plant Hygiene 97 Landscaping 4.10 Propagation 4.10.1 Sexual Method of Propagation 4.10.2 Asexual Method of Propagation 4.10.2.1 By Cutting 4.10.2.2 By Division 4.10.2.3 By Grafting 4.11 Plants Problems / Enemies 4.11.1 Diseases of Cacti & Succulents 4.11.1.1 Basal and Root - Rot 4.11.1.2 Fungal Leaf Spots 4.11.1.3 Shooty Mold 4.11.1.4 Cork Scab 4.11.2 Insects, Pest of Cacti & Succulents 4.11.2.1 Mealy Bugs 4.11.2.2 Aphids 4.11.2.3 Scale 4.11.2.4 Spider Mites 4.11.2.5 Thrips 4.11.3 Cultural Damage of Cacti and Succulents 4.11.3.1 Cold Damage 4.11.3.2 Drought Damage 4.11.3.3 Scorch Damage 4.12 Let Us Sum Up 4.13 Key Words 4.14 Further References 4.15 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises 4.0 OBJECTIVES After going through this unit, you will be in position to : study Cacti and Succulents plants used in open garden development, learn essential equipments and material for garden plantation, discuss essential environment for Cacti & Succulent garden, study land development and growing media for Cacti and Succulents garden, discuss garden setting for Cacti and Succulent, learn plantation methods of plants in the garden with Cacti & Succulents, discuss cultural operations in Cacti & Succulent garden, and learn protection method of garden plants of Cacti and Succulents from enemies/ problems. 4.1 INTRODUCTION Originally, Cacti grow only on the American continent. Succulents were in nature to many region from Northern Europe to the Far-East. Most of them were 98 concentrated in southern and eastern Africa. Natural distribution, enabled Cacti and Succulents to establish in new habitat across the world. Now these are Cacti and Succulents Garden cultivated throughout the world. Today, gardeners initiated in Cacti and Succulents as both, to develop open space garden and as a indoor decoration garden. There are national Cactus and Succulents societies in many countries. Botanist continue to discover new species in the wild region. About indoor gardening you have studied in the previous unit on Indoor Cacti and Succulents plants in detail. Here we will discuss to grow Cacti and Succulent in the form of a garden in open space. It can be develop as the open space garden, patios and Terraces gardens of your houses. Impressive collection of Cacti and Succulents have been established in the form of a garden, in various parts of the world, in both private gardens and botanical gardens or institutions. Among the best known are the Huntington Botanical Garden, in Callifornia; in Switzerland - collection in Zurich; the Palmengasten in Frankfurt, Germany and the oldest collection at the Royal Botanical garden, Kew. A collection of Cacti and Succulents has also been establish in Brisbane – Australia. There is a great scope to develop Cacti and Succulent garden in the open space, if there is space to prepare a well drained bed. Even in cooler climate, a wide variety of Cacti and Succulents plants can be sunk into the beds in pots during the summer to give seasonal interest to the display. 4.2 NATURAL HABITATS OF CACTI AND SUCCULENTS FOR GARDEN Cacti and Succulents do not inhabit only conventional deserts. They have a rich range of Habitat, from snow clad Alpine slopes and arid plains of Colorado, plains to humid jungles in the Amazon basin. These plants grow in such conditions where survival is very difficult; indeed their success partly depend o lack of competition from other, less robust plant life. Looking at their habitates reveals much about their evolution and cultural need which help us to develop Cacti and Succulents gardens. 4.2.1 Desert Plains Cacti and Succulents In harsh dry habitats, Cacti and Succulents reign unchallenged, during high temperature, extremes of scorching days and freezing nights. Some cacti can survive without water for years and live in true desert, which have less than 25 cm of rain fall in a year. Most grow in semi deserts Cacti and Succulents, which receive sporadic rainfalls between drought. The semideserts areas have very poor soil with little vegetation and rocky outcrops, rather than pure sand. Small plants like haworthia, thrive occasional bush fire. Desert Cacti and Succulents have capacity to store moisture and withstand in drought, by becoming dormant, and start growing in favourable conditions. The knowledge of these plants help us to develop Cacti and Succulents garden in dry areas where rain fall is less or less water is available to irrigate the garden. 4.2.2 Mountainous Deserts Cacti and Succulents In mountainous deserts, including screes and rocky slopes. The soil in these region is often very thin, does not retain more water. It has a high mineral content 99 Landscaping that can be toxic to nonsucculent plants. In mountain desert only native Cacti and Succulents survive. On high peaks, plants are expose the bright sunlight, night temperature as low as – 4°F (-20°C), Fierce winds, and snow. Above cloud layer some time there is no rain but the plants gain moisture from melting snow. In such condition only small globular or creeper Cacti and Succulents can survive in such condition, but lower down, where the scope has some shelter, columnar Cacti and large Succulents can grow at such places. As such places, the cloud left diffuses the harsh sun-light and provides some moisture to Cacti and Succulents grown there. On dry overcast foot hills below the clouds, small cushion type Cacti predominate. At such places where harse cold and bright sun, many Cacti in such mountain regions have a dense coat of woolly spines and succulents developed thick, waxy skins. Low - growing succulents also grow in many rocky habitats in temperate regions. Some simpervivum species colonize the Alpine part of Europe, and several species of Sedum thrive in much of the Northeren Hemisphere. Even in the Galapagos Island, the soil - less wastes of Lava rock, provide a home for Cacti such as Brachy cereus nesiotieus. All these such type of information about the habits of succulents and Cacti grow there, are very helpful to develop a Cacti & Succulent garden in such type regions. Cacti Garden on Mountain 4.2.3 Jungles Cacti and Succulents Most of the Cacti and succulents grow in arid deserts and mountain areas, but many species inhabit to grow in sub-tropical and tropical rain forests. These forests are in central and South America, Sri Lanka, the West Indies and Africa. Here the climate is constantly hot and humid. The sunlight is filtered through a thick tree canopy. Succulents and Cacti are amply provided with moisture from the atmosphere and regular rain falls. Therefore Cacti and Succulents of such region, have adapted, to survive in less light rather than water. Although, they can survive in periods of drought. Such type of plants are best grown in humid and light shaded areas of Cacti and Succulent gardens. 100 Many jungle or forest Cacti such as Flamboyantly flowered Epiphyllum, some Cacti and Succulents Garden succulents like ‘Hoya’ which grow in Northeastern Australia, are epithytes. The anchor themselves to the stems of other plants or inhabit the upper branches of trees where there is more light. Other species have scrambling or climbing habit. This habit help them to grow over or through other plants toward the light.