Landscape Cacti & Succulents

There is a whole world of cacti and succulents to get into, but not all of them are appropriate for our landscapes in the arid southwest, tolerating reflective heat, or frost. Many cacti and succulents are just too small to be in landscapes without getting lost. The plants mostly represented here are plants that are more appropriate for our landscapes, in the ground. We have these plants broken up into some useful categories.

  • Agave

    Family: Asparagaceae
    Agaves are a diverse group of succulents native to the Americas (though now widespread around the globe due to their economic importance. Photo of Agave parryi var. truncata by Mountain States Wholesale Nursery.

    Agave Profiles

  • Yucca

    Family: Asparagaceae
    Yuccas are bold landscape subjects, often arborescent. Native to the americas. Photo of Yucca madrensis by Ries Lindley, SEINET.

    Yucca Profiles

  • Hesperaloe

    Family: Asparagaceae
    Hesperaloe plants are spikey landscape accents, native to the arid parts of Texas in the United States and Mexico. Photo of Hesperaloe chiangii by Mountain States Wholesale Nursery.

    Hesperaloe Profiles

  • Desert Spoons

    Family: Asparagaceae
    Desert spoons belong to the genus Dasylirion, all native to Mexico, with the ranges of three species also extending into the south-western United States. Photo of Dasylirion wheeleri by Mountain States Wholesale Nursery.

    Desert Spoon Profiles

  • Beargrass and Other Grassy Succulents

    Family: Asparagaceae
    In the genus Nolina, beargrasses can resemble grasses. Many species become treelike. Photo of Nolina nelsonii by Mountain States Wholesale Nursery.

    Beargrass Profiles

  • Barrel Type Cactus

    Family: Cactaceae
    Usually solitary barrel type cactus, from various genera. Photo of Ferocactus wislizeni by Max Licher, SEINET.

    Barrel Cactus Profiles

  • Cholla Cactus

    Family: Cactaceae
    Branched, and usually treacherously armed cacti that are important desert habitat plants, if often formidable. Photo of Cylindropuntia bigelovii by Anthony Mendoza, SEINET.

    Cholla Profiles

  • Prickly Pear Cactus

    Family: Cactaceae
    The succulent shrubs of xeric landscapes. Useful and important wildlife plants. Photo of Opuntia gomei by Mountain States Wholesale Nursery.

    Prickly Pear Profiles

  • Columnar Cactus

    Family: Cactaceae
    The towers of the desert, from the saguaro to the organ pipe. Photo of Stenocereus thurberi by Ries Lindley, SEINET.

    Columnar Cactus Profiles

  • Hedgehog Cactus

    Family: Cactaceae
    The hedgehogs are mostly in the genus Echinocereus and have spectacular flowers. They probably could have been lumped into the columnar cactus section, but we feel they are different. Photo of Echinocereus triglochdatus by Patrick Alexander, SEINET.

    Hedgehog Profiles

  • Pincusions and Small Landscape Cactus

    Family: Cactaceae
    Small cactus that still have landscape value and can handle the tough conditions presented by our environment. Photo of Mammillaria standleyi by Thomas Van Devender, SEINET.

    Pincussions and Other Small Cactus Profiles

  • Euphorbia

    Family: Euphorbiaceae
    Succulent plants in the spurge family that make great landscape subjects in our region. Photo of Euphorbia antisyphyllitica by Stan Shebs, Wikipedia.

    Euphorbia profiles

  • Other Landscape Succulent Plants

    The other succulent species useful for landscapes that don’t fit into any of our other neat categories go here. Photo of Aloe vera by madhu on Wikipedia.

    Other Succulent Profiles

  • Caudiciforms and other Fat Plants

    Caudiciforms, pachycauls, and plants that are naturally fat, sometimes with peeling bark, shiny trunks, or otherwise succulent-like but not quite succulent. Photo of Bursera microphylla by Leslie Landrum, SEINET.

    Fat Plant Profiles

  • Fouquieria

    Family: Fouquieriaceae
    There are 11 species of Fouquieria, with the most famous plants being the ocotillo and the boojum tree. Photo of Fouquieria diguetii by Mountain States Wholesale Nursery.

    Fouquieria Profiles