July 2019

Sisters Thongthiraj: (from left) Sue, Malinee and Arree
32 | ARROYO | 07.19
A FAMILY
AFFAIR
The California Cactus Center nurtures the
botanical wonders of cacti and succulents
along with familial bonds.
BY BRENDA REES
When the six Thongthiraj children were growing up in Pasadena in the 1970s, going
to Disneyland was the high point of their summer break. But before the daughters
could get into the car for a pricey day with Mickey and Minnie, they were told they
needed to contribute to the family business. “Our father insisted that in order for us to go, we
needed to propagate 1,000 flats of plants,” Arree recalls of her childhood with a laugh. “And
we always managed to do that before the summer ended. He was very smart that way. That
project certainly kept us busy and out of trouble.”
Indeed, keeping busy has long been a family affair at the California Cactus Center, which
has been at its original East Pasadena home since it opened in 1976 with a simple setup — just
a couple of benches, a gravel floor and a modest selection of home-propagated plants. Today,
five of six daughters are actively involved in the day-to-day workings at the nursery known
internationally for all things cacti and succulents. With 23 additional acres of propagation
facilities in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, the center specializes in rare and hard-tofind
plants with specimens from all over the world.
Away from the buzz of busy Rosemead Boulevard, a steady stream of customers wanders
among rows of sculptural exotic plants that are often weird, fuzzy, prickly, knobby and mesmerizing.
The center was a natural offshoot of the beloved hobby of Arree’s father, Zhalermwudh,
who, along with wife Maleenee, immigrated from Thailand in the 1950s. He had fallen
under the spell of desert cacti and succulents in his adopted country so he started to investigate
species, perfect propagation techniques and learn everything he could about these plants —
long before the Internet made such research easy.
–continued on page 34
PHOTO: Courtesy of Brenda Rees