So now it was time to actually do the planting. You had to be careful with a desert environment. For one, this place was used to being very, very hot, and the vegetation there had to rely on finding its own source of water most of the time. Her parents had found her a few varieties of cacti and ferns, though, and Sierra knew both were common in the desert.

She started by using her smallest garden shovel to shift the soil to where she could easily drop the seeds into it. She made sure to make these holes where the most light would get through to the seeds and eventually, the plant. She also wanted to allow rainfall to come through, too. So the holes were situated to reflect just that.

Then she dropped the seeds in, a few in each hole. She filled a nearby cup with some water and then used the water to pour into each hole. When she was done, she patted the soil to fill in the holes. Now, the seeds were tucked safely away. She added a bit more water to the top then patted down the soil once again.

Cacti planted!