Steem Plants Contest #14: Plants of Atacama desert

I know what you are thinking - what plants could possibly grow in the driest place in the world? In some parts of the desert there is just a sand and rocks, but in another a few kinds of plants grow freely, thanks to incredible power of Mother's Nature adaptation. I decided to write about Atacama to prove that amazing plants can be found everywhere, even in the most surprising places.

All the photos and information are from my private archive/notes. I visited Atacama desert three years ago and spent there two weeks.

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Jojoba

You could hear about Jojoba oil, which is used in many cosmetics. That always green plant is able to survive even the biggest amplitudes of the temperature. It's very important as on Atacama desert days are very hot but in the night temperature goes down to 0°C.

Jojoba (green bushes on the photo) can live up to 200-250 years. Obviously, you won't find it in the driest parts of the desert, like Valle de la Luna or Valle de la Muerte, but this plant doesn't require a lot of water to survive.

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Opuntia

Usually Opuntias which grow in Atacama are much smaller than Opuntias which you might know from another parts of the world.
It's a favourite snack of vicuñas and alpacas - camels of South America.

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Lichen

Definitely the most popular plant on Atacama. There is many kinds of lichens and they grow even in the most challenging environment, including parts of the desert where there was no rain since at least 450 years (probably much more, but we don't have any historical data about the climate before A.D. 1570). How would it be possible? Even though there is not much (or not at all) rain in Atacama, fog appears in some areas in the morning. Plants use the dew from the fog as the main source of water.

Let's remember that not every part of Atacama is equally dry. In some parts the underground waters goes out and create tiny lakes, place where you can find marvelous flamingoes and other kinds of lichens

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Grass

Such a common plant that we stopped noticing it, didn't we? Well, in Atacama it's quite unusual to find it. It appears near to the lakes and in the valleys with the rivers only. As it's so unusual to find it here, it's easier to appreciate it and re-discover how beautiful regular grass can be. Just look at the photos I've made below and tell me I'm not right:

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And others

Besides that, in some particular places it's possible to find Agaves and Yuccas. It's very rare though. I didn't make any photo of that two plants during my trip.

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Thank you for your attention. If you have any question, feel free to ask me in the comment below.

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