| Fouquieria | ||||||||||||
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Fouquieria columnaris Fouquieria splendens et al |
Fouquieria is a genus of about 10 species of desert plants in the family Fouquieriaceae including the ocotillo (F. splendens) and the boojum tree (F. columnaris). They have succulent stems with thinner spikes projecting from them, with leaves on the spikes. They are unrelated to cacti and do not look much like them; their stems are proportionately thinner than cactus stems and their leaves are larger.
They are native to northern Mexico and the bordering US states of Arizona, southern California, New Mexico, and parts of southwestern Texas, favoring low arid hillsides.
These plants have also been placed in Ericales, Violales, and their own order Fouquieriales.
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