Prickly Pear - Page 2

EJ, since your summers don't get nearly as hot as they do down here and you do have real winter weather whereas down here we have a very few days of semi-cold, your cactus will not grow as quickly as they do here. I would keep it in your conservatory this winter simply because it is a baby and you want to give it a chance to put down some roots and get established.

While they do thrive in areas that never see winter temps, ice or snow....they also thrive in areas that do. Not the sort of winter that covers everything with ice/snow for weeks and the temps stay at 32 or below for that whole time. But once it is established, if it happens to get caught outside for a day or two in those conditions, it will survive. They have out where my Mom lives when winter gave them about an inch of ice on everything and 8 inches of snow on top of that and it all hung around on the ground for almost a week. Some of the upper pads might break off from the weight of the ice but the plants survived.

Also, as far as their size you can keep that under control by breaking off pads to keep it a managable size just like trimming other plants.

The biggest thing with the prickly pear is to not over water it. The tropicals you have are natives to areas where the temps are basically the same all year round and the rainfall is sometimes above what other places received. The cactus is a desert plant and is native to areas that receive much, much less water, where the temps can and most often do range from 32 degrees a few times in winter to 95+ for three months of the year and every temperature in between for the rest of the year.

I say go for it, keep it warm in the conservatory this winter, put it in a spot outside that gets as much sun as possible next summer and see what happens. Also, buy a pair of tongs, like for taking jelly jars out of boiling water when sterilizing them...you will need those for handling the pads.

Thanks Toni, you have filled me with confidence. At least I can keep it under control by, as you say, breaking off the pads if it gets to big. I am really excited about growing it as these sorts of plants don't crop up very often over here. I have to grow most of my exotics from seeds which take years to mature.

I looked at the photos Dooley, and wow what a big plant. Not as tall as I imagined, but quite a spread. I have read that you can eat the pad flesh if you peel it and slice it thinly and it is similar to green beans in flavour. At least I know that if it does become a monster, I can eat it all! Smile

Thanks for all of your advice - you have all been a great help. I have been duly warned about the spines, and will take care, also about how it grows and the conditions it likes. Now, so long as it doesn't rot before it can grow, I am in with a chance!

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