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Saguaro cactus
A saguaro cactus (pronounced sa-hwa-ro) is the stereotypical plant that people think of when they think of desert greenery. Branch-like arms extend from a base shaft that can grow more than 10 feet!
The biggest saguaro cactus is in Maricopa County, Arizona. This beast measures in at 13.8 m tall. However, these plants grow very slow – it can take up to 75 years to develop one of their side arms. The spines grow very fast – up to one millimeter per day.
Many animals take advantage of the fruit from a saguaro cactus. Because they are not self-pollinating, the cacti rely on bats (because the flowers open op during the night time) to spread their seed. Desert wood peckers also use saguaros for their domains, but this usually leads to the demise of the plant.
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