• Plants are able to adapt to the arid conditions.joshua tree image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
  
  Plants have adapted to survive in arid conditions. To live in drought-like conditions, plants have modified root systems that are deep enough to reach underground water supplies. Some plants can live in arid regions by lying dormant during the winter months and blossoming when water becomes more available. Plants are also able to conserve water by having little leaves to lower the need for water.
  
  

Joshua Tree

• The Joshua tree is a member of the lily family that is native to the Mojave Desert in southwestern United States. The perennial shrub with spike-shaped evergreen and white flowers grows in elevations up to 6,000 feet in arid soils, plains and mesas in Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah. Typically, a Joshua tree will grow anywhere from 15 to 40 feet in height and 1 to 3 feet in width. Highly tolerant to drought, the Joshua tree blooms in late spring and early summer and depends on moths for pollination. The tree possesses small, fleshy greenish-brown fruit that dries after it ripens in late spring. Mormons are credited with naming the desert shrub. The Mormons thought that the shrub was imitating the biblical prophet Joshua and gesturing to them with upraised arms.
  
  

Arizona Poppy

• The Arizona poppy, also known as the summer poppy or orange caltrop, blooms from July to October. The plant needs little to moderate water and grows in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas as well as in northern Mexico. The Arizona poppy possesses roots that are typically 8 inches into the ground. The deep roots let the poppy grow again if rains arrive past the normal growing season. The plant grows up to 3 feet tall and often contains flowers with five petals that are yellow or orange in color. While the plant contains no fragrance, it still attracts bees, butterflies, wasps and flies.
  
  

Cactus

• A cactus is an example of a xerophyte plant. A xerophyte plant is able to change its physical structure in order to live in arid conditions. A member of the rose family, a cactus lacks leaves but is able to store water in its stems. A cactus also contains shallow roots which allow it to absorb water quickly when it rains; water is then stored in roots and stems. A cactus is well adapted to live in arid environments because it can live for years on the water gathered from one rainfall. The shiny skin of the cactus helps to keep in moisture. Its spine guards the plant from animals, protects it from the sun and also gathers moisture.