Never needs water, fertilizer or anything else. Just harvest and enjoy! Being that it's cold hardy down to USDA climate zone 4A, just about anyone can give it a grow!
Grew up on them. Grandpa had a huge field of Cactus Pear. Best summer fruit after Watermelon. Chill in the fridge for an hour or so before eating. Side effects: Constipation. 😳
My Gramm turned me on to these. She was visiting and we took the dog for a walk. She honed in on a neighbor that had them as a hedge. She asked them if she could have some. They nor I even knew they were edible. Extremely delicious! The seeds are a headache, but the taste is so worth it. We have the purple variety.
very popular here in Lebanon called " sobair " in arabic, you can put them in water several hours to avoid thorns before peeling, it becomes expensive now..
My cactus is almost 5 years old but the fruit is small is that because of the type or could it be because there are wood chips around it keeping It to moist?? Mine looked much like yours and I do use the pads for eating. I love it in chilli and sauteed with Anaheim cillies and over medium eggs for breakfast. So many ways to use the pads. But my fruits are too small to use?
Same on Morocco, we call them "hindi", I think it comes from the fact that in classoc arabic they are called "صبير التين الهندي", roughly translated to cactus of Indian figs. They are pretty much everywhere, and I think they thrive in Mediterranean climate.
Texan. Grew up using them as Trail Snacks. Spent all my tiem outdoors hiking, hunting fossils and so on-diabetic and never carried water or snacks as I could always stumble upon [[or Thru]] Cactus. Out in NC now, not sure where I might even look for them-they also make a nice 'No Tresspass" Barrir.
@@plantabundance I have seen these in my food store will the seeds be plant able and how to plant them from seed?(do they need a cold period to sprout)
@@DragonmasterKeel just so you know here in Arizona literally where the fruit falls and rots on the ground most of the seeds will make new cacti plants. You literally have to do next to nothing to get these to grow don't overthink it toss them in the ground fruit and all throw a few seeds on the ground put a little dirt over top and you don't even have to water them in the rain will come and they will eventually grow. I planted my two from paddles I swiped off of plants growing in the wild stuck them part way in the ground water them now and then forgot about them for a year and they're giving me fruit like crazy. They're cactus the more you care for them the more they hate it! Ignore him and they'll do great especially in a warm dry Sandy soil/climate
@@bobbiduval7961 alright I was just wondering because fruits you buy at the story are usually picked early so I wanted to know if the seeds would still be good/viable
Since I live in Florida, I have sand as soil. It drains like a kitchen sink. Water will not sit on the surface. It's either racing downhill and won't take a drop or it flows straight through. It will vanish in an instant. I put all of my cactus in the house's drip line. You would be surprised how much they love water as long as it always drains away. They grow massive quick.
Florida also ... if you want good soil, use a LOT of mulch over your gardening area. My uard used to be sand and weeds and I could not grow anything. I mulched my entire yard with a layer of cardboard as a compostable weed barrier first and now a year later I have good healthy soil underneath - it holds moisture and my plants and fruit trees love it.
@@spearageddon3279 I used cardboard and a massive layer of wood chips (6"-2'), then about an inch of tea/coffee grounds worked in from the top down. It still doesn't hold water but any shovel full of soil will yield earthworms, and or grubs. There is plenty of life but it all dries out so damn quick.
@@vonries do you mean 6" deep to 2ft out? If so, I would say that's not enough distance. It does take some time though for the soil soil quality to improve. Also, if you don't have enough canopy cover yet, that may be why it's drying out so fast? I have several fruit trees going now so mine gets mix of sun/dappled sun and I have mushrooms all over the place from the moisture it's holding. Now I don't have drip lines, I do a deep water at base/roots in AM and this is what's working for me. I know Florida gardening is tricky and took me awhile to get it right in my yard. I lost many plants & fruits in the beginning, may they RIP. 😏
@@spearageddon3279 6"-2' deep with 95% coverage of the yard. I did all but under a massive northern pine in the back yard, and a small gap around my house.
I live in Florida too. I put down 6 inches of soil under 8 inches of the sand/dirt around my house. Just so there was some moisture to save them. The only plants I haven’t had luck with is Lettuces.
There are many Opuntia species which are very cold hardy, however the one you are showing would be killed 100 percent in anything less than USDA zone 7a!
I tried my 1st yellow one it tasted different from the others best thing I've ever tasted, I also tried an orange one, I have one right now. Cheers to Prickly Pear fruits.
Definitely another very common Mediterranean fruit as figs no one grows it because it's growing everywhere by itself it's delicious after leaving it in water for some hours and then freezing it.there is also another variety with blood red fruits which are smaller and much more spiny.
My grandpa grew this in his yard and it was huge. He would cut a few pads off anytime he wanted. Plan on doing the same now that I own my own house now.
watching and laughing from the cactus capital Sanderson, Texas. I am surrounded and inundated with prickly pear while I struggle with a rookie garden. Last winter I harvested dark purple fruits but they were dried out by then. This fall I will have tons and will get them early to make jelly and juice. Coincidently I have been trying to learn how to compost these nopales in this dry environment. They are so hardy they don't decompose. If you come up with a compost recipe for them I will be the compost queen. Thank you for the timely feature today.
@@grlnexdoorable thx, I have piles of dead yellow pads in this very hot Texas sun that remain sturdy. I watched vids on adding water to them. Seems they need to be chopped up into little pieces. Then it takes a long time still to get them decomposed. They are the living dead. Working on it though. Will experiment with the metal pot drying.
@@patriciapolizzi4143 not to sure on how much it supports your soil compared to compost but I think it has some good effects other then feeding your plants if you haven't already I suggest looking into KNF(Korean Natural Farming) and JADAM as they are focused on building soil the natural and low cost way especially if you don't have much resources to work with.
Prickly pears grow wild here but omg the stickers...! Maybe our wild so cal ones are worse than yours. I pick them anyway but it's a ton of work. They are beet red inside and make fantastic punch. I freeze it in cubes for fun ice cubes
In my family, we call the full moon in August, the "Prickly Pear Moon," because that is when they are ripe where I live. We harvest prickly pears every year. They are very good for diabetics.
You forgot to mention that there are well over 100 species and that consuming too many seeds will cause serious constipation. The yellow fruit variety native to this area is different from yours. It has a watermelon/bubble gum flavor, and the pads are much longer and thinner. There is also an _exceptional_ purple fruit variety that has overtaken watermelon as my favorite fruit. It is also native to this area, but has massive thorns and lots of glochids too. I reached out to you by email a couple days ago. Very Best Regards, Tom Scott Author ● Speaker ● World's Leading Expert on the Corrupt U.S. Legal System _Our American Injustice System_ _Stack the Legal Odds in Your Favor_
Great info but I think the prickly pear commonly used for landscaping and eating, Opuntia ficus-indica, is only cold hardy to USDA zone 8. Only the most cold hardy Opuntia species grow to zone 4a.
I live in zone 8A, I haven't seen the nopales type cacti since we moved here from S.California where I grew up with one in the backyard. One of our Hispanic neighbors clued us in to the cactus pear. My parents had no knowledge of them. They were both raised on eastern seaboard.
Thank you for sharing! I live in zone 6. This is so helpful to me. I'm not sure we're to purchase these plants. I would appreciate if you could let me know. Learned so much from you. God bless you!
I think you can find the pads on Etsy. Or maybe even at a grocery store. We just lay the pads down on the soil to propagate. They will grow roots. If you live in a wet part of the country, plant them where they'll get good drainage.
We had these when we lived in southern Arizona. Now we're in the northeast USA (zone 6A) and would love to grow a prickly pear, didn't realize they could survive up here. The only question is, where to get one?
The claim of being cold hardy down to USDA Zone 4a is a bit misleading. The variety in the video is Indian Fig (Opuntia ficus-indica), which is generally only hardy to Zone 9 and originates from Mexico. That being said, there are other varieties that are more cold hardy, but they don't tend to have fruit that is worth pursuing. A nice middle ground for cold hardiness and fruit size might be Engelmann Prickly Pear (O. engelmannii) and Western Prickly Pear (O. orbiculata), which are cold hardy into Zone 7 and are used commercially to make syrups and jellies. If you need to go even colder and aren't planning on large fruit, Eastern Prickly Pear (O. humifusa) and Bigroot Prickly Pear (O. macrorhiza) can make it down to Zone 4 and Brittle Prickly Pear (O. fragilis) can make it down to Zone 2.
Hello I’m a new subscriber and would love to grow this!! Can I please buy some seeds of this cactus from you?? Or maybe you can let me know where I can find them? 😊
Your plant could benefit from a bit of water. Those pads are rather thin. Just a small amount weekly will massively increase your yield - both in number and fruit size.
Thanks! Do this have any specific species name? I just looked them up to see if I can buy a plant and saw many different types. Also how to they overwinter?
If I were to get a pad and plant it how long would I have to wait before it starts to bare fruit? Also if I wanted to dig up a prickly pear to move it when is the best time to do so and what all needs to be done so it won’t die of shock? Thanks in Advance 😊
great looking flesh and its looked very flavorful. you didnt mention variety. can I buy a pad from you. i'll include shipping. I am in california. thank you and blessings, Nick
I live in New Hampshire. Are you telling me they can grow here even when we have several feet of snow in the winter? I love them, but I can';t believe they grow in my climate.
Do you know that variety name. We have opuntia’s here by the beach. But they’re purple and small, I want that one. I’d like to have a pad if ever possible, I just know which varieties of opuntia’s produce the best fruits
great video. I've been thinking about growing this cactus. what variety is that specifically? I keep seeing a lot of cold hardy prickly pears that are small and say they only grow a foot or two tall. I'd like to plant one that can get big like that. Do you know a good source to buy cold hardy cactus? I'm in Upper Peninsula of Michigan zone 5b
If you pick the prickly pear fruit before it flowers, then it will grow out a new one BUT after the ordinary season. You will be able to eat fruits during off season like November and December.
I live in the Kansas City area where we get snow and ice in the winter sometimes (zone 6a I think), would these plants survive outside or would I have to grow them in a pot and bring them in side in the winter?
Hi i was wondering if you sell pads id be willing to buy a few . Ive only been able to find the short eastern prickly pear to get to grow here in northern illinois
I haven’t had any luck getting any fruits. I’ve had my cactus for about 3 years. Not even had a single flower. Some friends tell me it’s bc I have a male plant but I’ve had others tell me even the male plants of this make fruits. I have harvested a couple pads, but my kids HATE when I try to feed them to the family, so I’ve left the pads alone. Is there anything I need to change or look out for that could be causing it to not fruit?
I think a raised bed might be better. It would not have to be to tall just so the plant would not be at risk of being to wet. Be sure to mix sand in the soil for good drainage.
Remember not to eat more than 5 to 6 per day otherwise you will get constipated ، I grow up on them best summer fruit taste better cold , in Tunisia where I grow up we call it sultan of the fruits it means the king of fruits .. not available here in south Florida
What kind of prickly pear is that? I live in Michigan and the one i have is a lot smaller and only grows flat on the ground. I wander if you could sell me a couple of them pads. 😁
Dang, I wouldn't mind growing this however, Prickly Pear is considered as an invasive plant here in Australia. It's illegal to sell or swap them in New South Wales (where Sydney is) as we had a huge problem with them in the 1920s. The control / eradication of them is an ongoing issue.
It's better to list pros _and_ cons of this plant, such as it's danger to anyone, especially children and pets, running into a patch of prickly pear; people in the south will put it under a window to prevent people from crawling in, but, worse yet is its invasiveness, and once it takes over it becomes a dauntingly dangerous process to remove it; image a large and growing impenerable mass of needled plants growing along the side of your home.
