Boston fern is a common ornamental plant frequently grown as a houseplant in cold climates. Nephrolepis exaltata is a tropical sword fern (in the family Lomariopsidaceae), native to humid forests from northern South America through Mexico, Florida, and the West Indies, where it can grow up to 7 feet tall.
Here is one growing outdoors in Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Boston Fern
Greenery also spreads on the lower part of a tree trunk. Here is an example of green growth on a tree trunk at Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Green Growth on a Tree Trunk
The original Banyan tree is Ficus benghalensis and native to India. The name Banyan refers to banyans, or traders, who commonly sold their merchandise under a Banyan tree in India. Typical leaves on a Banyan are glossy green, large, and elliptical in shape. Banyan trees have a unique root system consisting of both shallow, spreading subterranean roots and aerial “prop” roots that hang from the branches.
The first image at Fullerton Botanical Garden shows only banyan tree trunks, where the tree has not fully matured. The other photos are of a mature banyan tree in India.
Banyan Tree Trunks
Old Banyan Tree
Roots of a Banyan Tree
The towering, striking, and unusual plant, Echium wildpretii, ‘Tower of Jewels.’ While this plant stands at nearly seven feet tall, its tiny, salmon-colored flowers are what make it truly magnificent. Here are some at Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Tower of Jewels
Tower of Jewels Flowering Plant
The crown-of-thorns, Christ plant or Christ’s thorn, is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to Madagascar. Here is one at Fullerton Botanical Garden with bright, blooming flowers.
Crown of Thorns
Crown of Thorns Closeup
Commonly known as African Candelabra, Ammak, or Desert Cactus, it is a striking succulent plant native to the arid regions of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Somalia. Clusters of small leaves form along the margins of the Ammak, with flowers budding in the Spring/Summer time.
While it features a tall, columnar growth habit, this one is bent out of shape at Fullerton Botanical Garden.
African Candelabra
At Fullerton Botanical Garden, Euphorbia grandicornis is a great-looking upright, multi-stemmed succulent shrub with strong spines resembling cows’ horns. It has angular, zigzag-shaped stems, making it a good ornamental choice.
Cow Horn Cactus
Imagine a plant that looks like a palm tree from a distance, but like a cactus up close. It is a stem succulent that photosynthesizes mainly through its trunk and comes from the island of Madagascar, off the east coast of Africa. Saw some at Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Madagascar Palm
Madagascar Palms
Sabal palm, the Florida state tree, is one of the most prevalent palm species. It has a single, unbranched trunk with a 12- to 18-foot-diameter crown. The durable trunks are used for poles, docks, and wharf pilings.
A closer view of one at Fullerton Botanical Garden. The trunk with leaves cut out creates an interesting design.
Sabal Palm Trunk
The golden barrel cactus has a globe-like appearance and is recognized by its magnificent color that comes from vertical yellow ribs that line its edges. A few of them at Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Golden Barrel Cacti
Silver Dollar Prickly Pear is a large species, growing to about 20′ tall by 12′ wide. Individual pads can reach 1′ long by 8″ across, and are generally heavily thorned. Yellow flowers are produced in the spring.
These are grown at the Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Silver Dollar Prickly Pear
Mexican Fence Post Cactus at Fullerton Botanical Garden has clean, upright columns, deep green color, and a bold desert presence. This cactus can grow up to 15 feet tall and develops multiple branches over time,
Mexican Fence Post Cactus
Euphorbia enopla (Pincushion Euphorbia) is a beautiful species, with energetic, shrubby, green succulent with fantastical, long ruby spines reminiscent of a sea urchin. It isn’t an actual cactus.
Here is one grown at Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Euphorbia Enopla or Pincushion Euphorbia
Euphorbai Enopla
The candelabra tree at Fullerton Botanical Garden can grow to 30-40 feet (10 m) tall. The branches all grow from one trunk and look like little cacti near the top, giving it the shape of a candelabrum. It has little yellow flowers in mid-winter.
Candelabra Tree
Ocotillo, mostly in Mexico, is a spiny shrub to 20 ft. with many long, whip-like, unbranched green stems growing from the base. Stems are leafless most of the year, covering themselves with bright green leaves after a rain. Here is one in the Fullerton Botanical Garden.
Although it is grown in Fullerton Botanical Garden, it is found in the Pampas grasslands of South America, where it is a tree called the Ombu. It is the only tree-like plant that lives on the Pampas because it does not require much water to survive. The Ombu can be found in Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay.
Ombu Tree
Ombu Sign
This tree-sized succulent, at Fullerton Botanical Garden, is a member of the agave family and is named for the long, delicate leaves that drape over the branches, giving it a “ponytail” effect.
Ponytail Palm Tree
Ponytail Palm
From colorful flowers at Fullerton Botanical Garden, we move to the beauty of desert trees and plants.
In 1954, the State of Arizona named the Palo Verde as its State Tree. The legislature did not distinguish between the two species of this tree that are native to the State; therefore, both the highly contrasting Foothill and the Blue share the honor. The dry desert adapted Foothill Palo Verde shown below is very common (>95%) compared to the desert wash-adapted Blue Palo Verde
Palo Verde Tree
Caves on the Santiago Oaks Trail look almost like eyes above a nose in a face, if using imagination.
Caves Look Like Eyes
Lying peacefully in East Orange, California, alongside the Santiago Creek, the 1,269-acre Santiago Oaks Regional Park is a nature lover’s paradise. This secluded refuge offers hikers, bikers, and equestrians the natural charm of mountain vistas, an orange grove, a meandering creek, and a mature forest with many different tree species.
Hiking Trail
Horse Trails
Horse Trail