A Saguaro's Growth Rate

A seed fallen on the dry desert floor will remain intact for numerous seasons. The heaviness of the sun's temperature will not be enough to crack it open. Nor will the strongest currents of a flash flood be enough to drown the seed. These currents can reposition the seed to an environment of protection or into a hungry bird's line of sight.

In the Protection of an Old Fence.

A protective environment, like in the shadow of a Palo Verde Tree and coupled with the humidity from a monsoon storm, the Saguaro seed will finally germinate. Its threadlike root arrangement can pull water molecules out of the driest of sand soils. Hidden in its world the Saguaro seedling begins to grow only one inch in its first year but in 15 years it will reach one foot in height.

Its slow growth rate presented a mathematical word problem to me. If a Saguaro Cactus takes 15 years to grow one foot, how many years will it take this same Saguaro to grow 30 feet tall? The answer would be 450 years, which in my thinking is not a slow growth rate at all in desert standards.

It is no secret that the longevity and slow growth rate of a spiny green whale is dependent on rain fall during a desert's cycle of monsoon storms. What most do not know is that a Saguaro's size can be further slowed in a dry season or seasons in which a Saguaro responds by shriveling and then turns to a yellow color. However, once the rain water returns, the Saguaro will revert to its healthier state. Such is their resilience to desert climate.

A monsoon storm is rich in rain water and rain water is the purest form of water. Pure water is a catalyst in a Saguaro's growth rate, so, could I apply this knowledge to somehow harvest the power of pure water? And then, channel this power to increase the growth rate of a home grown Saguaro seedling?  The potential for an immediate growth brought to mind a silly image of an 80 Foot Saguaro Cactus breaking through the floor and crashing into the ceiling of my home.

3 Weeks Old- Saguaro Seedlings.

I eventually discovered that in providing the Saguaro seedling with a regiment of weekly waterings of pure water, its growth rate can average 6 inches a year (as told by a professional Saguaro Cacti grower in Tucson, AZ). This estimates to 1 foot of upwards growth for every 2 years. This means that once a seedling has been planted in its proper soil, it can grow 30 feet high in 60 years.

Close to 2 years old.

I prefer this growth rate better, it allows for the possibility of me fully growing a giant Saguaro in my backyard. In a hundred years I may have to change this blog name from, 'Follow Me Through the Desert', to, 'Follow Me Through My Backyard' and take a closer look at the slow growing blessing of the desert.