As two collectors walk down the South Korean nursery's humid aisles, they spot a magnificent specimen. Having collected South African succulents for over two decades, their greenhouse showcases many plants growing in what looks like their natural Succulent Karoo habitat. But they have never seen this species before, and judging from its size, the plant looks decades old. The nursery owner tells them the succulent is a new mother plant used for cultivation and is not for sale. But if they wanted an equally large plant, he could connect them to his broker. Two weeks later, their 110-year-old plant arrives by courier from Cape Town. It is the last of only two centenarians left in the wild. South Africa's Succulent Karoo is home to weird and wonderful flora that occur only in this small, arid part of the Earth. Many species are so tiny they are hard to spot with the naked eye. Some produce beautiful flowers or look like they belong in a sci-fi film. Others are so rare only a few people have seen them. These unique qualities make them sought after in the international horticultural market. While South African nurseries artificially propagate Succulent Karoo species for sale in Asia, Europe, the United States and elsewhere, foreign large-scale outlets supply the greatest market share. Yet despite this legal supply, some species are illegally removed from the wild, especially in the Northern and Western Cape provinces.