NORTHERN NOPAL, EPISODE SIXTY ONE

[@trillium7582]

I don't know how I originally found your channel, but I wanted to let you know that I am really deeply delighted by the exact mix of super weird intro with 80s hair rock and the calm and scientific information in the body of the video. Thanks!

[@esotericagriculture6643]

Thanks!! 😁😁 Very much appreciate the kind words!

[@kathleenebsen2659]

Here in Northwest Arkansas Zone 6, I have grown the Eastern Prickly Pear (Opuntia humifusa) for many years. It is completely hardy and ranges well up into Canada. It adapts to the cold by laying down its pads to the grown. It also is adapted to a more humid climate. I harvest the young pads in the spring before the new growth spines harden. The fruit is a lovely purple color with edible seeds. I burn off the spines and use a Scotch Brite to scrub off any remaining glocids. I cut the fruit in half and scoop out the seeds. The fruit tastes somewhat like melon. The addition of citrus truly enhances the flavor. I make awesome marmalade and pancake syrup. I have also made an excellent wine. The seeds can be toasted and ground into a meal. Add it to pancake batter. Good luck!

[@NayrbRellimer]

If I remember correctly, prickly pears (Opuntia humifusa) actually grow wild in parts of Ohio and Indiana with well-drained soil. It might be possible to find prickly pears growing in parts of Indiana dunes. I would assume you would need to amend your soil to drain more freely when growing prickly pears outdoors. I'm hoping to eventually grow native Opuntia humifusa prickly pears where I live in Ohio for the tasty fruits and nopales. I would definitely have to amend my heavy clay soil before planting though.

[@esotericagriculture6643]

I have many plants of Opuntia humifusa. While native to sandy soils, its extremely adaptable. I have been growing the same clone for 32 years in many different gardens, all planted in clay soil. Worst case scenario, the roots rot, but the pads don’t, and it just re-roots later. Generally, it comes through most winters fine with no damage or loss. I ate a lot of the fruits as a kid. Smaller and seedier than proper prickly pears but not terrible, and you can grow them outside where I live. I did purchase a new variety this year that’s a complex hybrid supposedly with excellent fruit quality but hardy to zone 7. That one I intend to try in an amended bed with perfect drainage.

[@NayrbRellimer]

You might be able to grow eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa) as a perennial where you live if you ammend the soil to drain well enough. Prickly pears only grow in well-drained soil in my state, but the climate where they do grow similar to the location in central Pennsylvania where you live.

[@ogadlogadl490]

What zone are you in boss?

[@redxcube1543]

That's not Opuntia ficus-indica. Probably that's Opuntia humifusa.

[@esotericagriculture6643]

I assure you it’s ficus-indica. I watched my friend remove seeds from ‘tuna’ fruits purchased from a local Mexican grocery, and then watched him plant those seeds, and watched those seeds grow into 7 foot tall behemoths in 2 years. I cut the pads directly off those 7 foot plants that I used for my trial. Also, I have many plants of humifusa, I’ve been growing it for over 30 years now. They are very very different. I could have done a better job providing a sense of scale though. I can see how it might be confusing without a reference point for the size of the plants in the video. Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@drewsample9610]

The Experimental Farm Network has seeds from three accessions of cold-hardy selections of Opuntia sp. by and by.