Across these seven Spanish islands off the Moroccan coast, volcanoes have shaped a mountainous landscape in a mild Mediterranean climate that has led to the development of a unique succulent. In fact, every island features its own endemics and many species are restricted to just two or three islands in the archipelago.

From east to west the islands go from nearly barren moonscapes (Fuerteventura, Lanzarote) to lush laurel forests (La Gomera, La Palma), and the islands catch moisture on their north sides, and tend toward dryness in their leeward souths. Combine dramatic changes in elevation, up rocky hillsides, through pine forests and the marine layer, and you’ve got a recipe for hyper speciation. In short, it’s a botanical paradise. It’s also a tourist destination, with Gran Canaria attracting European snowbirds to its vast warm beaches. But how many notice the Dragon Trees?!

Russell lived in Spain while editing Cactus and Succulent Journal and made two excursions to the islands in 2009/10, to hike in Tenerife, Grand Canaria, and La Palma. In 2018 he returned to experience four days in Fuerteventura, a large, volcanic island of extraordinary beauty in the dry eastern end of the archipelago, and returned a few months later to La Gomera, a round green island resplendent with succulent plant life, as well as relict laurel forests, quaint villages, and excellent food. Rarely visited, and sparsely populated, but with excellent roads and well-marked trails, La Gomera is paradise for succulent-lovers and solitude seekers.