GARDEN LIFE
Prickly treat
Satish Narula

Dorstenia foetida has ‘star’ power. — Tribune photo by Manoj Mahajan

AT the entrance of my house is a small four-inch potted plant (Monodenium lugarde) that looks like a cactus and has ‘arms’ bent in a welcome gesture. This plant is not a cactus, yet visitors dislike it. I have often been cautioned against keeping ‘cacti’ at home.

The belief underlying this dislike is: Cacti make a home a desert. It is a misplaced belief, feel cacti lovers. Not only are cacti the only signs of life in a desert, they support hundreds of other forms of life too. How then can they make a home a desert? Notwithstanding the beliefs of Vaastu freaks, there is no need to dread these thorny beauties or consider them inauspicious. They are, in fact, one of nature’s most beautiful creations.

J.S. Sarkaria, a father figure among the cacti lovers in India, is a strong advocate of the beauty and utility of this plant. A walking encyclopedia on cacti, he has travelled widely in search of its different species. In the USA, all cacti growing in the wild are a protected species, he informs. Anybody who removes or destroys this plant in that country faces a hefty fine plus imprisonment. Thus, if the cacti were a cursed plant, Texas, famous for the Saguaro cacti, wouldn’t be one of the richest states of the USA.

EARLIER COLUMNS Plain chance for hill plants April 18, 2004 Peach within reach April 4, 2004 Bloomers a blot on flower fests March 21, 2004 Flower shows, a platform for innovation March 7, 2004 Time for plant rejuvenation February 22, 2004 The lawn as a canvas February 8, 2004 Carnation care January 25, 2004 Tree truths January 11, 2004 Nip mango mealy bug in the bud now December 14, 2003 Plant evergreens at the entrance November 30, 2003

Christians, in fact, rever the zygocactus, popularly called the ‘Star of Bethlehem’. Though it blooms briefly, for a few hours in the dead of night, its parts symbolise ‘The Manger, the Angels, the bed of straw and the newborn’.

Cactus was introduced in India in the 18th century. The opuntia was the first species to reach here for rearing a bug, the Cocheneal worm. The spineless pad opuntia was introduced as fodder but was later destroyed. Agave sislina was used by the sailors to make ropes and still grows wild in south India. It is also used for soil conservation. Interestingly, you will find cacti in almost every fort or Muslim graveyard. Tribesmen in India eat cacti tubers to quench their thirst or for medicinal purposes.

Most of the cacti species have adapted well to the climate of Chandigarh. Some of the best varieties grow here and a testimony to this is the National Cactus and Succulent Botanical Garden and Research Centre at Panchkula, conceived and created by Sarkaria. Two cacti species have been named after him: the Caralluma sarkariae and Caralluma bhupinderana, Sarkaria.

Many cacti names are tongue-twisters, says Brig. C.S. Bewli. For instance, the Mammillaria, which has a small nipple-like structure typical of mammals. Astrophytum looks like a star from above, golden spines distinguish the Discocactus aureispina and the Ariocarpus kotschoubeyanus is like a living rock. Mammillaria parkinsonii has spines pointing downwards.

Cacti are not only desert plants, as is commonly believed. Their main requirement is a porous soil with excellent drainage. A mixture of 50 per cent coarse sand along with well-rotten farmyard manure, leaf mould and bone meal gives the best results.