How do desert plants store water to survive years?
Desert Water Vaults
How do desert plants store water to survive years?
The desert is a tricky place to be a plant. Rain might fall once this year, or maybe not until next year. The sun beats down every single day. The air is so dry it can suck moisture out of anything. So how does a cactus just… stand there, plump and green, like it's at an all-you-can-drink buffet?
The secret is storage. Desert plants are like tiny water towers with roots. When rain finally comes, they drink as fast as they possibly can. A big saguaro cactus can gulp down a ton of water—literally 2,000 pounds—in a single rainstorm. That's like filling up a hundred bathtubs in one night.
