The Cactus Garden is a unique botanical garden at the Statue of Unity site, created to exhibit a huge variety of Cacti and succulents, the true miracles of adaptation. The thought behind the development of the cactus garden is to provide an experience of the desert ecosystem in the midst of a landmass well entrenched in an aquatic surrounding. There are 6 lakh plants of 450 species spread across 25 acres of open land and inside the dome having an area of 836 square metres. A grand architectural greenhouse, is an ecological habitat of national and international species of cacti and succulent plants. These cacti and succulent species represent their origin in 17 countries of the world mainly from North & South America and African continents. Beautiful rockery showcases distinct flora in its richness.
The garden is a ravishing landscape and also an educational and learning opportunity for students and enthusiasts to explore the nature’s wisdom. Cactus plant occurs in various size and shape range. These plants can withstand even in extreme harsh condition. The Atacama Desert is the driest planet on the earth and cactus also found there. Cactus is a miracle of nature. It can store water in the thickened and fleshy parts. Most of the species of cacti have needles which are real leaves of the plant. These spikes save the plant from the eating by the animals and also prevent the water loss by reducing the airflow. It has some shades on the leaves. As it has no true leaves, the stems carried out photosynthesis process. It is native to America. You can find it from Patagonia in the south to western parts of Canada in the north. Some species also found in Africa and Sri Lanka. At the Statue of Unity, Geer Foundation takes the initiative to build the cactus park in the 836 sq. Mt. Area of the land. At present, it has 500+ Cactus and Succulent.
