Welcome to Colleen’s Corner. This is a column meant for fun and some information About myself: I am a Freelance Photographer you often see me on the side of the road or in various places taking photos of different things animals, birds, places, people etc. l have lived in Lumby just over 8 years you have seen my photos in the newspaper (Lumby Valley Times) and once in awhile in the Vernon Morning Star, and the Lumby Art Gallery. Photography is my passion. Disclaimer: The information on some of my photos that I write about a lot of times come from the Internet or books I research them, hopefully the facts are as close to the truth as I can come.
Driving along the roads I see these beautiful Cactus and Palm Trees of all different sizes and shapes in people’s yards. Some of the yards have both. It is quite a nice drive to see all of these results of nature.
There are approximately over 2,000 types of Cactus in the world including in Canada, and approximately over 2,600 Palm Trees. Cacti do not only live in the desert, but they can also be found in jungles. They have long roots which drink rain water. The rain helps
in their life cycle which consists of growing flowers and fruits, the seeds from the flowers and fruits help the Cacti to grow. The flowers and fruit help to feed the wildlife nearby. The cactus live about 10-200 years which depends on which species they are. The most common cactus is the barrel cactus, the larger ones can grow up to about 10 feet. Mexico has the most variety and numbers of different cacti. Texas has more cacti than Arizona. The cactus plants would be as old if not older than dinosaurs. On the Mexican flag you will see cacti. The tallest known cacti so far is about 23.8 m which would be about the size of five and a half double decker buses that had been stacked on each other.
Palm trees can be found in tropical and subtropical areas, like South America, the Caribbean, South Pacific, Asia, Rain Forests, Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North and Carolina, Texas, California, and Hawaii. They can grow to over 100 feet.
Some species of Palm Trees can live up to 50 years while other species can live up to 200 years. Palm Weevils which are a very invasive species are a serious threat to the Palm Trees.
There is a Palm Tree called Methuselah located in Al-Ain of the United Arab Emirates. This tree is well over 4000 years old.
So when driving down a road and you see the cactus and the palm trees take a deep breath and take in all the glory of such long lasting sights, as one day they might not be here.
