Knowing echeverias

摘要

Echeverias, amongthe most belovedof succulents, havebeen described aseverlasting flowers, their colorfulrosettes so oftenresembling thetightly cupped petals ofsome oddly fleshy rose.Almost all echeveriasare perennial succulentplants with thick orfleshy leaves arrangedin a rosette form. Somehave squat, compact,solitary heads; someform clumps with onestout stem surroundedby smaller rosettes atthe base, while oth-ers have more openrosettes on outstretchedstems and may developinto small shrubs. Thespecies are variable--aplus in cultivation--butsometimes the linesthat separate them are unclear and confusing. Taxonomically, this has been a difficult genus toorganize into distinct species for two main reasons. The first is that individual plants within a species can look so much unlike a typical member of theclan that they can appear to belong to anotherspecies altogether. The second reason is that echeverias in their natural habitats have been poorlystudied. The mountainous terrain in which theyare found is often remote and difficult to accessand therefore contains many unexplored niches.As more detailed field explorations are conducted,the species and their population boundaries areexpected to become more clear. At present thereare about 130 accepted species, with new onesbeing discovered and described every year.