Drought Plants

Drought Escapers Plants- Xerophytic Plants

            These are the ephemerals xerophytic plants which live only for few weeks during the brief spring or wet seasons in habitats with prolonged dry seasons. Many of these plants emerge from the seeds in early spring or rainy season, bear leaves, develop flowers and fruits within a short span of a few weeks when there is enough water in the soil and the air is humid. When the dry season comes their seed have already ripened and the plants die. They pass the rest of the time in the form of seeds which are not easily affected by drought. These plants are drought escaping rather than drought resisting. The biennials are also belongs to this category. Their two periods of active life, vegetative and blooming, concide with favourable conditions of the environment. In the unfavouable periods their actual part die and the remaining parts are buried in the soil where they are comparatively safe from the effect of drought. Common examples in this category are:

Suaeda fruticos

Tribulus terresteris

Solanum xanthocarpum

Carthamus oxycantha

Carthamus tinctorious

Argemone Mexicana, and

Echinops echinatus