Cactus home plant description. Indoor cacti

Olga Korytina

Municipal budget preschool

Educational institution

Kindelinsky kindergarten

"Chamomile".

Orenburg region.

Tashlinsky district.

Prepared:

Secondary teacher

groups. Korytina

Olga Evgenievna.

Kindelya village. 2012.

Integrated lesson on ecology in the middle group.

Subject: « Houseplant - cactus.»

Program content:

Strengthen children's knowledge of names indoor plants, their parts.

Exercise children in performing simple labor actions to care for plants(water them, wipe off the dust.) Introduce correct working techniques.

Teach children how to properly use a brush, a damp cloth and a watering can.

Maintain interest in plants.

Teach comparison, identifying the main characteristics of plants.

Develop fine motor skills, hand coordination, perception, logical thinking, independence.

Cultivate a desire to care for plants, to care about them.

Vocabulary enrichment: cactus, care, absent.

Activating the dictionary: water, wipe.

Preparation for class: costume cactus, watering can, napkins, soft brushes, sheets of paper (half a landscape sheet, geometric shapes for applique, a ready-made flower sample. A conversation about safety with sharp objects.

Individual work: practice watering with each child plants from a watering can, in wiping dust from leaves using a damp cloth.

Progress of the lesson.

(There's a knock on the door. A child in a suit comes in cactus with a sad expression on his face.)

Hello children. I cactus. Prickly is just a toddler.

I'm all green, like a watermelon.

I have always lived in the desert

Where there is no water.

Will educate: - Cactus, hide your needles!

After all, they are sharp and prickly!

And sharper than even a spear!

I'll prick your finger.

What happened, why are you so sad and showing your needles?

I'm looking for my brother. He is prickly, green-skinned

And he looks like a hedgehog.

On the window growing

It blooms very rarely.

Have you guys met him?

Will educate: -Yes, this is ours cactus! (A flower is displayed. Children look at it, find similarities with the guest - cactus.)

Yes, of course, this is my younger brother. Look how similar he and I are. It is also round, green and has spines for protection. Finally I found it!

Will educate: -Guys and Dear Cactus, you know that there are a lot of varieties of this in the world plants, cactus(Story about cacti accompanied by the display of photographs or illustrations.)

Green hedgehogs, which can often be found on housewives’ windowsills, each with their own character. Grow they are in dry deserts and steppes. These plants unexpected and whimsical forms: - and balls - round and ribbed, and cakes, and columns. All cacti covered with spines of different colors and sizes. These plants withstands heat and lack of moisture. And when these thorns bloom, it is difficult to find more beautiful flowers than their flowers. Some bloom once every five years. So, nature lovers, a beautiful and blooming garden on your window is not just a decoration rooms, a source of creativity, but also useful plant. Of some edible cacti They make compote and jam, because it tastes like strawberries.

Guys, let's show our dear guest how you take care of indoor plants.

Watering cactus rare. He doesn't like a lot of water.

We wipe off the dust carefully so as not to get hurt.

Will educate: - Expensive cactus, please don’t take your brother with you, let him live in kindergarten. The guys will take care of him, and maybe he will blossom!

Okay, guys, I see that you all really love flowers and know how to take care of them! Let my brother live here, but I have to go!

Will educate: - Wait, cactus, the guys want to give you small keepsakes.

(sheets and figures for applique are prepared on the tables "Flower".Children make the applique on their own, focusing on a sample of the finished work. During work, the smooth, calm melody of P. I. Tchaikovsky sounds "Autumn Song".

You guys did very beautiful and neat work, I am very pleased to receive gifts from you. Thank you for your hospitality, goodbye. (Guest leaves).

Will educate: -Now let's summarize the lesson.

Tell me who visited us?

Why did he come?

What did you show him?

What stood out to you the most?

The lesson is over.

Cacti are one of the most ancient plants. On the planet, the number of their varieties will soon reach three thousand.
These thorny plants are easy to care for. They love a minimum of water and can withstand large amounts of sunbathing. This is due to the location of their homeland – South America. Cacti are very diverse. Since this plant has been known for a long time, people have found many uses for it.

Spines are not the only decoration of the cactus. Some species are able to bloom, and it is truly a stunning sight. Over the many years of existence, cacti have not been used anywhere. There are also many hoaxes and rumors associated with them.

The most important myth of our time

The first home computer several decades ago was the reason for the appearance of another guest in the house - a cactus. For some reason, people then believed that this plant, placed near a monitor or in any other proximity to technology, would absorb all - or almost all - harmful radiation. But in reality there are no studies that prove this. But cactus spines are capable of ionizing the air.

The drink that gave different visions

Cactus for food purposes? Why not, because this became widely known after similar descriptions in the book of the writer Carlos Castaneda. True, it was not the cactus itself that was used, but its roots. Shamans from Mexico experimentally discovered that a drink with the root of the peyote cactus put them into a state of deepest trance. Simply put, it was very potent psychedelic. Currently, it is prohibited to grow such cacti in many countries. This does not stop the Indian tribes from Latin America that have survived to this day. Many of them still deify hallucinogenic cactus. They even have this belief: when you see such a cactus, you should definitely say hello. If you don’t do this, the cactus will harbor a grudge and even be able to cause damage. This cactus is also called Lophophora Williams.

Favorite of cows

Cows love to eat cacti. Farmers benefit from the cows' addiction to them: such a diet stimulates greater milk production. Animals should not be allowed to eat cacti, as the thorns will injure them. Therefore, farmers in Mexico collect these plants and remove their needles. Not all cacti are suitable for eating; prickly pears are the ones that are usually collected. This use of cacti naturally affects their number. Therefore, farmers often bring prickly pears from other places when the cows eat all those growing around the farm.

Heterogeneity of sizes

The height of Californian cereus reaches twenty meters! The stems of such frightening giants can contain the purest fresh water - up to two tons. 20 is not the limit: a cactus of this type has been recorded that has grown to 24 meters. He did not become this way right away: his maturity lasted 150 years.


And the smallest representatives of cacti are Blossfeldia. Their height is only a few centimeters. It ranges from one to three cm.

Food

Not only animals, but also people can eat cacti. Columbus at one time, having met with Indians from America, first decided that they were eating melons. But later he realized that he was very mistaken: it was a cactus. Nowadays, the most common sweet in Mexico is slices of cactus covered in sugar. The cactus itself, from which such confectionery delights are made, is called “candy”. And some types of cacti were completely destroyed by the inhabitants of Bolivia and Paraguay. Not because they are dangerous. But because they were amazingly tasty after baking.

Cactus as an organic dye

Not tequila

For some reason, many people believe that tequila is made from cacti. However, this drink is obtained from blue agave. This misconception is most likely due to the fact that agave is confused with cacti - which it actually is not.

Musical instrument

It sounds strange, but it is the stems of large cacti that give the traditional drums from Argentina a special sound. Special processing of such stems adds a specific sound and incredible color. Over the years, local residents have learned to make the most of these thorny plants. One German musician actually used the cactus to record his music.

Why cost a wooden fence when there is a cactus?

Cacti can also be used as a hedge. Densely planted plants can create an impenetrable wall. Frightening thorns can discourage many people from entering private property. However, in areas where cacti are abundant, such fences may not have the same effect as they do on tourists.

People may be resistant to such a sight, but dogs and coyotes are afraid of these thorny plants. Wolves are also scared of cacti. Even those people who first came to the Wild West noted this peculiar phenomenon.

In addition, cactus needles can be used for medicinal purposes. Instead of a needle, they can be used to stitch wounds.

Not just plantations - there is one of a kind on Earth cactus garden. It is located in Monte Carlo. Cacti are planted on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, and the number of their species reaches several hundred.


Vitamins are obtained from cacti. Cacti also make good soap and shampoo. Unpretentious cacti do not tolerate frequent rearrangements. Frequent turning causes the appearance of these plants to deteriorate and the needles to fall out. Sometimes frequent twitching can even lead to the death of a cactus.

They are often grown as house plants.

2. In total, there are about 3 thousand species of cacti in the world.

3. Their first species appeared on Earth, according to various estimates, 30-35 million years ago.

4. The modern name “cactus” for this type of plant was invented by Carl Linnaeus. It comes from the ancient Greek word "kaktos", which was the designation of any plant with thorns.

5. Cacti are perennial plants, some species live for hundreds of years.

6. Before the discovery of the New World by Columbus, Vespucci and other navigators, cacti were unknown to Europeans.

GIANT CACTUS

7. There are many types of this plant. Some of them grow up to 20 meters in height (giant cereus), while others barely reach a few centimeters.

8. Pollination of cacti is carried out by bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and even bats.

9. Cacti are touch-me-nots. Although this plant is unpretentious, it does not like unnecessary attention. Excessive manipulation can lead to death.

10. Cacti have adapted to life in the desert; they can easily tolerate heat up to +60 degrees.

11. Thanks to their beauty and unpretentiousness, many cacti quickly became quite popular as indoor plants, although, of course, home specimens are difficult to compare with the majestic giants growing in the wild.

12. House cacti do not often need to be turned on the other side to the sunlight. This can lead to weakening of the plant and even loss of needles.

13. In some countries, entire cactus plantations are grown to produce red dye.

14. The stems of cacti store water reserves, which, as a rule, are safe for humans (be careful, there are poisonous cacti).

15. In Mexico, a dessert made from slices of cactus in sugar is very popular.

16. These desert plants have become a symbol of the state of Arizona.

17. A series of experiments have shown that dry-loving plants contain antibiotics, killing 85 percent of organisms that might attack the plant.

18. Many people are of the opinion that the desert plant absorbs radiation. In fact, this is not true. This myth stems from an interesting fact about the plant: it grows better in areas where the level of electromagnetic radiation is increased (coincidentally).

19. Once upon a time, prickly pear cacti almost caused an environmental disaster in Australia. Prickly pears brought to this continent rapidly captured more and more new spaces, displacing other plants and, with their thorns, killing the cattle that ate them. The Argentine moth, introduced for this purpose, helped cope with the cactus invasion. They even erected a monument to her in Australia.

20. Columbus was the first to see that thorny plants were eaten. He saw the Aborigines eating “prickly melons,” which soon became known as cacti.

21. The world's smallest Blossfeldia cactus. Its height ranges from 1 to 3 centimeters.

22. Lophophora Williams is revered as a divine plant by many Indian tribes in Latin America. The Indians are sure that when you meet this cactus you must say hello, otherwise the plant will be offended and send damage to the impolite person.

CACTi IN MEXICO

23. The natives of South America have long used cactus needles for surgical purposes, using them to stitch wounds.

24. Many peoples associate the New Year with an elegant, beautiful Christmas tree, but not among Mexicans, because in Mexico they decorate large cacti instead of a Christmas tree.

25. The largest cactus reached a height of almost 25 meters. In 1978, it ceased to exist due to the raging elements.

26. Donkeys in South America know how to knock thorns off cacti with their hooves, so that they can then calmly eat them. European animals do not have such skills.

27. Cactus stems are used to make traditional Argentine drums.

28. In Paraguay, baked green spines are considered a real delicacy.

29. Cacti have nothing to do with tequila. Many people mistakenly assume that tequila is made from the sap of a thorny plant, but this is misleading. Tequila is made from agave.

30. People who believe that cacti cannot be replanted are by no means right. Plants require replanting once a year. This stimulates root growth and promotes flowering.

CACTUS GARDEN IN MONTE CARLO

31. In Monte Carlo, on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, a whole garden of cacti of different types and sizes was planted.

32. Green spines of cacti contain many vitamins and other useful substances. Therefore, cacti are used both in medicine and in cosmetology. For example, soap and shampoos are made from them.

33. Scientists have proven that cactus spines ionize the air.

34. Dogs and wolves are very afraid of cacti, even if they see them for the first time.

35. In Mexico, cacti are food for cows because many farmers are convinced that green plants increase milk production.

FLOWERING CACTUSES

36. Many people believe that cacti bloom only once in a lifetime, but this is not true. The plant blooms every year.

37. The roots of cacti, unlike the roots of trees, go only slightly into the ground, which is why they are easy to uproot or knock down. But they grow significantly in width, so that in case of rain they absorb moisture from the maximum available area.

38. Some types of cacti contain an intoxicating substance - mescaline. When consumed, a person experiences hallucinations.

39. Previously, mescaline, contained in desert plants, was used by shamans to plunge into a trance.

40.You can get a prison sentence for importing certain types of cacti into Russia.

41. Near the village of Novy Svet in Crimea there is a field where cacti grow wild.

42. Europe's first collection of cacti appeared in the 16th century in London, collected by an inquisitive local pharmacist.

43. From 75 to 90 percent of the mass of a cactus is water. The exact value depends on the type of plant and its current moisture supply.

44. The tallest cactus ever found grew to 24 meters and is estimated to be 150 years old. It is still growing, being under official state protection. For his damage, the authorities promise 25 years in prison.

45. In 1956, one Brazilian resident found himself with 267 cactus needles in 15 seconds. No one has yet managed to surpass this dubious record.

46. ​​Thorns replace leaves for cacti, but much less moisture evaporates from them than from flat leaves. Their other function is to protect the plant from animals.

47. Mexican farmers actively feed their cows prickly pear cacti, which contain a lot of water, as this allows them to increase milk production. Cows like this food, but it has to be cleared of thorns before feeding the animals, otherwise they may get hurt.

48. In some Latin American countries, homeowners plant rows of spiny cacti along their fences for added protection. It is extremely difficult to overcome such a wall.

49. In Paraguay and Bolivia, cacti of the species Neowerdermannia/Weingartia are on the verge of extinction.

50. Cacti play an important role in the ecosystem of the regions where they grow.

photo from open sources

A cactus is not only a familiar element of home decor, placed somewhere on the windowsill. Many of these plants have truly amazing properties, and the number of their species is enormous. Cacti also play an important role in the ecosystem of the regions where they grow.

1. The modern name “cactus” for this plant species was coined by Carl Linnaeus. It comes from the ancient Greek word “kaktos”, which was the designation of any plant with thorns.
2. The great discoverer Christopher Columbus in his notes tells that the aborigines he met ate melon. In fact, the American Indians tasted the cactus.
3. The cactus family includes 2.5 thousand plant species.
4. Cacti are raw materials for the production of alcoholic beverages, shampoos, sweets, vitamins, soap and many other things. Production waste is fed to cattle.
5. The smallest representatives of the cactus family are Blossfeldia, whose height reaches only 1-3 centimeters.
6. The largest cacti in the world are the giant Californian cereus, whose age can reach one and a half hundred years, and their height is 20 meters. The stems of such cacti contain up to 2 tons of fresh water suitable for drinking.
7. In Mexico, farmers feed dethorned prickly pears to cows to help them produce more milk.
8. In Paraguay and Bolivia, cacti of the species Neowerdermannia / Weingartia are on the verge of extinction. The fact is that when baked, they are considered real delicacies among the locals. In Mexico, one of the favorite sweets is candied slices of the Melocactus oaxacensis cactus.
9. The world's only open-air cactus garden can be visited in Monte Carlo.
10. In the Australian town of Bunarg, a monument to the Argentine moth was erected, since this insect saved Australia from the excessive spread of prickly pear cacti, which had a detrimental effect on local livestock farming - livestock ate the cacti along with the needles, and then died from them.
11. In 1956, a Brazilian resident found himself with 267 cactus needles in his body in 15 seconds. No one has yet managed to surpass this dubious record.
12. Lophophora Williams is revered as a divine plant by many Indian tribes in Latin America. The Indians are sure that when you meet this cactus you must say hello, otherwise the plant will be offended and send damage to the impolite person.
13. Sterilized cactus needles were used in the past by doctors in Latin America to stitch wounds.
14. Donkeys in South America know how to knock thorns off cacti with their hooves, so that they can then calmly eat them. European animals do not have such skills.
15. For some reason, dogs and wolves do not like cacti and are even afraid of them.
16. Scientists have proven that cactus spines ionize the air.
17. Contrary to popular belief, tequila is not made from cacti.

More than two thousand species of cacti are known, of all shapes and sizes.

The Caldera cactus, which is found in the southwestern United States, can grow up to 20 meters in height, while the Rebutia cactus barely reaches a few centimeters. This baby grows mainly in Argentina and Bolivia. Some types of cacti look like candelabra or columns, others are flattened, there are plants that look like an ear (Opuntia). There are even cacti that look like a coiled snake or a beer keg, a starfish and even a wrinkled human face.

Even the smallest cactus has a powerful, developed root system that can spread both deep and shallow below the surface. Cactus flowers are also worthy of special mention - they can be white (Cereus), red, pink, purple or yellow. Flowers on a cactus can bloom for several days, or they can bloom and fade within one day. Some flowers bloom at dawn, others at sunset...

Depending on the species, cactus needles can be tender and vulnerable, or they can be hard and poisonous, reaching a length of several centimeters.

cacti pollinated by insects and small birds (hummingbirds). Some cacti with red flowers emit a special “meaty” smell that attracts insects.

The roots of the Mexican peyote cactus (Lophophora williamsii) were and are used by the natives for their hallucinogenic properties. Residents make a drink from the roots of the plant, with which shamans enter a state of trance. The reason for this effect of peyote is the alkaloid mescaline. There was also a beneficial use for the hallucinogenic drink - the Indians often used it as an anesthetic during surgical operations.

A cactus is an ideal water reservoir. The water in it is not stored in its pure form, but as a thick syrup that can be drunk. It is unknown how many lives cacti saved for travelers in the desert... Water is easily obtained from cacti - just scratch or puncture the shell of the plant.

The most heat-resistant plants on Earth are cacti; they survive at 60 degrees of heat. Being desert plants, cacti, over the course of a long development process, have turned their trunks into reservoirs in which sometimes several tons of moisture accumulate. To reduce evaporation, the trunks of the cacti were covered with a waxy coating, and the leaves changed into spines.

The trunk of some cactus species is used to make Argentine drums called bombo leguero. The wood of some cacti is used in the construction of walls, roofs or load-bearing elements. The fruits of other types of cacti, such as Opuntia phaeacantha, are edible and are called prickly pear. The fruit of the Peruvian cactus Cereus repandus is called a cactus apple and has no spines. Locals often make syrup from cactus fruits.

Cactus needles are used for suturing, for which they are sterilized over hot coals. This, of course, happened before, I think that nowadays they still use a more modern tool.

The saguaro cactus has become the state symbol of Arizona.

Cacti have several periods - growth, flowering, rest. While growing, they prefer bright sunlight, high temperature and humidity. Light causes rapid growth of the cactus body and spines. During rest periods, plants prefer coolness (6-8 degrees), diffused light and low humidity (maximum one watering per week).

Cacti are propagated by seeds (not indoors) and cuttings. Cuttings are carried out in warm sand with average humidity, after which the plant is left to rest for a week - this prevents rotting during the transplantation process.

A moth monument was erected. In the 1920s, a South American cactus spread catastrophically here, and the only one that was able to cope with it was the introduced Argentine cactus moth, a natural enemy of the plant.

It is a myth that a cactus blooms only once in its life. This is just a beautiful legend. If the plant is healthy, it blooms every summer.

Various delicacies are made from cacti, their fruits are sold in markets, Indian tribes use it as medicine and also as a drug to enter a stupefying state for rituals. Cactus fruits are eaten raw, jams and compotes, unusual-tasting creams and jams are made from them, they are added to wine for color and aroma, and stewed with meat in the form of a stew.

Cacti from the North American Chihuahuan Desert fight high temperatures and lack of moisture by plunging into the ground.

Cacti from the genus Echinopsis resemble giant hedgehogs; they are up to two meters in diameter and about five meters high. This spiky ball weighs several tons.

Until 1978, the tallest cactus on Earth was considered the saguaro, whose height reached 24 meters, but it was toppled by a storm.

Dogs are very afraid of cacti. The settlers of the Wild West took full advantage of this to protect themselves from coyotes. They planted cactus thickets around their settlement and thus the protective flower prevented coyotes from getting into their houses.

Aphids are bred on cacti, from which food coloring is obtained.

The homeland of cacti is Central, South and North America. Cacti, as a miracle of nature, were brought to Europe by Columbus and spread widely.

Saguaro is under the protection of the US government and is punishable by up to 25 years in prison for harming him.

Cacti do grow better in conditions of increased electromagnetic radiation, but the idea that the plant absorbs radiation is highly controversial. However, the spines still serve as an air ionizer, this is a proven fact.

Since ancient times, in Russian houses on the windows there have been flowers of the epiphyllum cactus, similar to small flying birds, called the Varvarin flower in Russia because it blooms in December, on Varvarin Day.

There is still no reference book for cactus growers with a description of all types and varieties in Russian. Cactus lovers still use the old German reference book by Kurt Beneberg and Walter Hage, or small reference books with the main species.

Currently, scientists are doing a lot of work on the use of cacti in industry. Research has shown that vitamins, hormones, wines and liqueurs, soap, industrial alcohol, a substance that accelerates fermentation, and much more can be obtained from cacti. The waste does not go to waste either - it is used as animal feed.

The famous purple dye, which gave a royal crimson color to the clothes of nobles, was also made with the help of cacti. Opuntia plantations, sometimes huge, up to 60,000 plants, were created to breed the hairy aphid - cochineal, from which purple dye was extracted through processing. Before chemical dyes took over the markets, cochineal was highly valued, and there were many aphid farms.

The less you touch the cacti, the better. They suffer from frequent rearrangements and rotations: they lose their beautiful spines and do not bloom. Most often this happens to novice collectors who “drag” their cacti.

Cacti do not like changing conditions. That is why you should never get carried away with searching for non-existent “panaceas” and “secrets”. The associated incessant changes in soil, regime, arrangement, etc. extremely quickly lead to deterioration, or even complete destruction of the collection.

If you want to achieve success in breeding cacti and admire their wonderful flowers, you must not be afraid of your pets, you must learn to pick them up, replant them, wash them and treat them. A collector who approaches his cacti with caution will never achieve success: lest he inject himself!

In the conditions of low-sunny winters in the middle zone, each cactus, no matter how sun-loving it may be, requires gradual acclimation to the sun in the spring in order to avoid ugly and dangerous burns of the stem. The arguments in favor of building a greenhouse thus become stronger.

Cacti grow well in nature in direct sun. In indoor culture, some unprotected (naked) species require shading, but they also need light. Those cactus owners who place their plants in the back of their rooms on cabinets and bookshelves interspersed with figurines and ceramics are slowly killing them.

In some areas of Mexico, prickly pears, cleared of thorns and glochidia and chopped, are used as livestock feed with such good results in increasing the milk yield of cows that dense thickets of prickly pears are completely exterminated in places and farmers travel tens of kilometers to get them.

Cacti must overwinter in dry and cold conditions. The first real watering should be done only after the clear beginning of the growing season. Plants that have overwintered in the dark should gradually get used to the sun. In the spring, you should not wake them up with abundant watering, but only gradually irrigate them with warm water.

You might think: since cacti are desert dwellers, they are afraid of water. Firstly, not all cacti are dry-loving, and secondly, even the most dry-loving species need to be given plenty of water during their growth: they need it not only for nutrition, but also for cooling the stem through evaporation.

A cactus that does not grow in summer often dies in winter. A non-growing cactus is half dead, although some species can remain in this half-dead state for several years. In order not to lose a non-growing specimen, it is necessary to find out the reason why it does not grow (most often it is the loss of roots) and take the necessary measures.

In the countries of North and South America, where cacti grow “like grass,” mules and donkeys have perfectly adapted to independently knock off cactus spines with their hooves in order to enjoy the tasty stem without interference.

Certain species of melocactus and echinocactus (Melocactus oaxacensis, Echinocactus ingens) are eaten candied, the former is even popularly called Candy cactus. The stems are cleared of thorns and skin, cut into slices and boiled in cane sugar syrup. The demand for these candied fruits especially increases with the approach of Christmas and New Year celebrations.

Those who believe that the less often cacti are replanted, the better they grow, are wrong; they must be replanted every year! A correctly done transplant is not only not harmful to cacti, but, on the contrary, sharply stimulates the growth of roots and stems.

Contrary to the widespread prejudice that a cactus blooms once in its life, after which it dies, a healthy and mature cactus can and should bloom every summer without any harm to itself. It will become depleted only if it sets a lot of fruits; in such cases, it is better to remove some of the berries as soon as they set.

A series of experiments was conducted at one of the Californian universities. Twenty species of cacti from a wide variety of species have been studied as sources of antibiotics. It turned out that each cactus suppressed the development of several microorganisms, and lophophora showed the ability to stop the development of seventeen out of twenty microorganisms, and the diameter of the zone of action of this cactus turned out to be the largest; peleciphora took the second place in terms of strength of action.

The interest of doctors in the medicinal properties of cacti arose around the middle of the 19th century, when physiologists and doctors began to conduct experiments to study the healing properties of alkaloids contained in the tissues of cacti of various kinds - Cereus, Echinocactus and Ariocarpus. More than twenty scientific papers have been devoted to Selenicereus grandiflorus alone.

During the Spanish rule in Mexico, the Catholic Church brutally attacked the lophophora cactus, lophophora was counted among the mortal sins, and for eating it, the priests threatened not only with eternal fire, but also with bonfires on the ground. In the surviving missionary’s breviary there are two questions for confession, the following one after another: “Have you eaten human flesh? Have you eaten peyote?” (peyote was called lophophora).