Opuntia ficus-indica
Prickly pear cactus
Common names: Indian fig cactus, cactus fig
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Pot size
- from 50 l
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Hardiness
- Cold damage below −3 °C
- Water need
- Low
Photo: JMK · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
The prickly pear cactus forms flat, oval pads and bears sweet, red‑orange fruits in late summer.
Care instructions
Plant in a lean, highly porous cactus mix and place in full sun. Water moderately from May to August, allowing the soil to dry out between waterings; reduce watering from September onward. Overwinter in a bright, dry spot at temperatures just above freezing. Harvest ripe fruits in September and October, wearing gloves to protect against fine spines.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
HarvestSep–Oct
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
sandy, well-drained, lean, dry
Plant it in very free-draining, sandy-mineral and lean substrate; a mixture of coarse sand, gravel and low-humus soil suits it well. It does not tolerate waterlogging or calcareous soil, so use lime-free sand and a slightly sloping, rain-sheltered site.
Feeding
Light feeder
Months
Mar, Jun, Sep
You can feed sparingly and only three times a year: in spring at new growth, work a thin layer of mature compost shallowly around the base; before flowering in early summer and before fruit ripening in autumn, give a small application of horn shavings each time. In winter the plant rests and is not fed.
Overwintering
Bring the prickly pear to a bright, cool and frost-free place before the first night frosts in October. An unheated conservatory, cold greenhouse or a bright cellar room with a window suit it well. Keep it completely dry over winter, avoid warm living rooms (risk of rot), and put it back outside only after the Ice Saints, then slowly get it used to full sun.
Propagation
Methods
- Cuttings
- From seed
By far the fastest and most reliable method is propagation by pad cuttings (individual cactus pads). To do this, cut off a mature, firm pad with a clean knife and let the cut surface dry for one to three weeks in a bright, shaded and airy place until a firm callus has formed. This step is crucial, because freshly cut pads easily rot at the base. Then insert the pad only a few centimetres deep into a lean cactus substrate (cactus compost mixed with plenty of quartz sand) and water only when visible roots or new shoots can be seen. In the home garden, it is best to start from April to August, when temperatures are above 20 °C. Raising from seed is also possible, but takes much more patience: soak the seeds in warm water for 24 to 48 hours, sow them on the surface of a moistened cactus compost and sand mixture and press them down only lightly. Prickly pear seeds need light to germinate, so do not cover them with substrate. Keep the tray evenly moist (but not wet) and warm at around 20 to 26 °C, for example on a windowsill or in a cold frame. Germination can begin after a few weeks, but sometimes only after several months. Seedlings grow very slowly in the first year.
For your garden
Grow Prickly pear cactus yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
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