Cactus Garden

[eastex]

I have a few opuntia cactus, although it's been so long since I got them, that I couldn't tell you what they are. I have really nice one for Nogales that is pretty much spineless, but it's not cold tolerant and has to be brought indoors each winter.  Got it from a lady who fed them to her tortoise.  

[shoshannah]

Joseph Lofthouse, Cylindropunti imbricata, kind of like a skinny stem cholla?  I like the look of cholla wood with all its holes.  I especially like the saguaro cacti.

They are so impressive when you walk among them. 

Really would be grand to have one of these in your garden.  One like this is pretty old though.

[steev]

Lots of people would like to have a saguaro (I think they have to be over 50 years to branch); there was/is a significant trade in "poached" saguaros.

[richardw]

Impressive, so any idea how old roughly that would be

[steev]

I'd guess that giant is at least a century, possibly several.

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

Joseph Lofthouse, do you have any prickly pear cacti with purpleish or red flowers instead of yellow? Maybe pink, fuchsia, or magenta colored is what i'm after. Just tired of the yellow. I think I've seen some nearby many years ago. I need to remember to go out looking for them next season when they are in bloom.

[Joseph Lofthouse]

Oct 2, 2016 16:06:20 GMT -5 keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.) said:

Joseph Lofthouse, do you have any prickly pear cacti with purpleish or red flowers instead of yellow?

Opuntia polyacantha:


Opuntia basilaris


My favorite cactus flower is Echinocereus triglochidiatus.

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

Wow, that top photo looks like what i was interested in. Do you think i can ask you to save me some seeds from that plant for later? Thanks!

[reed]

I was in a garden center last week looking for perennials they had apparently killed. We buy them, nurse them to health and resell. They had little cactus in the discount pile for a quarter apiece, I just got them planted today. I picked ones who's tags said protect from freezing, to avoid scaring. I figured that meant they have some cold tolerance. I got six kinds.
Oputina species
Oputina quitensis
Oputina sublata cristata
Myrtillocactus geometrizans
Cotyledon species
Mammillaria gracilis fragilis

I planted them in an old coleman cooler for the winter, whoever lives will get a better home next year. I've had Oputina before but they are actually pretty aggressive growers here. These all look a little less prickly.

[shoshannah]

I thought this was interesting how the Native Americans ate the cholla buds.

www.slowfoodusa.org/ark-item/ciolim-cholla-cactus-flower-buds

[keen101 (Biolumo / Andrew B.)]

This last week I've been going to school in a nearby city, so while i was there i decided to take the opportunity to take a hike in relatively warm weather while it's still here. I didn't eat lunch before, so along the way i spotted some Prickly Pear Cacti fruits that were ripe and i carefully used some sharp stones to cut them open. They were absolutely heavenly. I always love the taste of prickly pear fruit. I found one that was extremely large and juicy, it was the best i have ever had in my life. At some point i started being greedy and to lax of my manhandling of the fruit that on my way down the mountain my fingers and palms were covered in those tiny cacti fruit hairs. They were so itchy. But funny enough i felt that the fruit harvest of that afternoon were so good that i felt it was totally worth it. I used some sandstone rocks to rub many of the hairs away. I am thankful for the harvest of the desert and the sacredness of the food it provides. That day was a wonderful day where i was in my desert zen.

[farmermike]

November cactus blooms!

[steev]

I've planted three cacti of the same sort as the above photo, which seem to be doing well on the farm.

I want to get some decent Opuntia going because I really enjoy nopales, although I find the fruit kind of "meh!".