多肉英文介绍Succulent plant.docx

Succulent plantFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaNot to be confused with cactus; nearly all cacti are succulents but not all succulents are cacti.Succulent plants, such as this Aloe, store water in their fleshy leavesIn botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents or sometimes fat plants, are plants having some parts that are more than normally thickened and fleshy, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. Succulent plants may store water in various structures, such as leaves and stems. Some definitions also include roots, so that geophytes that survive unfavorable periods by dying back to underground storage organs may be regarded as succulents. In horticultural use, the term succulent is often used in a way which excludes plants that botanists would regard as succulents, such as cacti. Succulents are often grown as ornamental plants because of their striking and unusual appearance.Contents [hide] 1 Definition2 Appearance3 Habitat4 Evolution5 Families and genera6 See also7 References8 Bibliography9 External linksDefinition[edit]There are a number of somewhat different definitions of the term succulent. One difference lies in whether or not roots are included in the parts of a plant which make it a succulent. Some authors include roots, as in the definition plants in which the leaves, stem or roots have become more than usually fleshy by the development of water-storing tissue.[1] Others exclude roots, as in the definition a plant with thick, fleshy and swollen stems and/or leaves, adapted to dry environments.[2] This difference affects the relationship between succulents and geophytes – plants that survive unfavorable seasons as a resting bud on an underground organ.[3] These underground organs, such as bulbs, corms and tubers, are often fleshy with water-storing tissues. Thus if roots are included in the definition, many geophytes would be classed as succulents.Plants adapted to living in dry environments are termed xerophytes; thus s