Planting Prickly Pear Cactus And Revenge Of The Fire Ants

[@codygregory5883]

The black cat isn’t taking $#!t from anyone lol. 😂

[@LiveLaughLolaKB]

I acquired a prickly pear pad a year ago from a plant swap in NW Tyler. I planted it in the ground, it now has a dozen or more pads! I'm so excited to eat the fruit!

[@DonAltopio]

yesss exactly, nice ... maybe start new ones to have a batch 👍

[@wanderingspider8988]

Haha your dogs and cat need there own show. They are hilarious especially together.

[@nrg8787]

You should wash ur rootball with a hose after you remove it from a pot whenever you have ants in a pot. Just to be sure ur getting them off the plant. Also don’t be afraid to squish the pot to get the plant to release.

[@wdwtx2.0]

Time for some bud nipping. Water them in with your anti-ant concoction.

[@lolitabonita08]

that is the same cactus that mexicans use for food and for the fruit...actually i have the same u have with the yellow flower and yes, they survived the cold spell we had..but i cover them with dry leafs..

[@countrysister700]

Cool! But why buy from Malta when you can get natives and plant paddles for free? We transplanted one from a pasture (Waco area) and it's been shot, dried out, drowned - you can't kill it and it fruits like crazy.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

These are a certain variety that grow in the Mediterranean, Malta, Sicily and Italy.

[@rmjr9451]

Looks great thanks for sharing im in Phoenix AZ , my front and backyard are full of all types of cactus with the majority opuntia and alot of other types of fruiting cactus. I love cactus they are extremely nutritious and have many health benefits, I also collect sacred cactus. Cactus are very unique and you literally can survive on them if ever needed. Thanks for your video love seeing your challenges and ant situation while filming you guys handled those cactus well with no pads broken 😀 👍🏽 👏 😄

[@ernestopiceno1507]

do the prickly pears come out on any cactus or is it a different kind

[@OSKG2023]

Prefect timing, I just bought a Brazilian Prickly Pear Plant from a farmers market.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Awesome 👍

[@wanderingspider8988]

Cactus seeds are tricky. To much moisture and they won't germinate properly, to little and they won't either. I like to use a 60/40 sand compost mix for germination of most cactus. I'll cover them with a dome at night and remove it and add extra heat during the day. This mimics the desert environment and gives me the best germination rate. Also don't give up on the seeds, I have had some take months to germinate.

[@matthewrains6905]

Love these! May they all produce in abundance! ❤

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Thanks, I hope I get some prickly pears next summer.

[@johncassa4299]

Hi from Australia, One of the best fruits to eat.

[@kathleenebsen2659]

I grow the hardy Eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa) here in zone 6 NW Arkansas. They produce a beautiful and delicious purple fruit. I make marmalade and even wine. I use the new pads as a vegetable. Tastes like green beans. It has slime like okra but you can rinse it off. Love scrambled with eggs. I singe off the spines and then use a scotch brute scrub pad. Remove glochidia from your skin by dripping candle wax on the affected area. Pulls them right off. Elmers glue works too. Enjoy!

[@af2w131f]

Great video, here in Tucson we have Indian Fig Prickly Pear everywhere which looks almost exactly like the ones you got from Malta. They grow huge, and when it rains too much and freezes just for a day or 2 they’ll sometimes have big limbs fall down. I drive around and pick them up and put in my trunk. I’m propagating them currently. I envy your large homestead man!

[@billyd7628]

you didnt really need to get them all the way from malta. the type they have in the med is ficus indica brought by the spanish from mexico to spain and then it spread all over and naturalized from morocco all the way to india. ficus indica is the standard Opuntia in cultivation so you can find it anywhere. as its the opuntia the meso Americans hybridized and domesticated. they combinined a bunch of different prickly pears to get the ficus indica.

[@mickcharlesbeaver4331]

Which city are you in? Without knowing more, I think you’ll want to protect your plants any time you’re below freezing, as your variety is typically only hardy down to zone 9. I’m in central Texas in zone 8b, and I lost all of my tender Opuntia during the winter.

[@johnfisher4910]

Be careful with covering your plants with blankets. I tried that this past winter and wound up smothering my plants, and making the situation worse. Maybe if you put a tarp over/around, without touching the cactus, that might protect them enough. Thanks again for all the great info. I'm actually in the process of building a fence, per your instruction :)

[@Miguel195211]

We here in southeast NC also have the dreaded fire ants.

[@RitaCaruana-w8l]

I'm enjoying watching you from where originated your prickly pear seeds! From Malta 😅❤

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Awesome, thanks you for watching 👍

[@SiCaRiI_DaGgEr]

I know this is a yr old vid, but Diatomaceous earth will take care of the entire ant colony with the quickness

[@lolitabonita08]

and yes, the prickly little thorns are ouuuch...bad, they stick to your cloth and then u get it in your skin. Tip for the ants...buy a bottle of the blue dishsoap...make a two gallons of water with half of cup of the dishsoap and pour that over the ants...gone...gone gone and is almost free. u can add two tablespoons of orange oil and that helps as well.

[@lolitabonita08]

I forgot to tell u...u can eat the "ears" but need to take the pricly things with a brush or peel them...to cook the cactus u put them in water and boil them to remove the slammy juice...rince and they are ready to be cook with eggs or potatoes... and for reproduction...easy very easy...cut one "ear" and just stick them in the soil...u have a new plant withing a month or less...

[@OpalandOogum]

Watch your dogs belly. I only discovered my dogs were being attacked by ants bc one was allergic.

[@vincerieger6143]

How do you water your cats. Do you use drip irrigation for rest garden

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Cactus need very little water but I like watering by hand every now and then.

[@evelynshaw3932]

It was fun watching you guys replanting your cactus. Your animals are very playful. I was wondering what would have happened if you had soaked the plants in their pots in a big tub of water? Would have the fire ants drowned and the plant come out of the pots easier? As I watched this video today I just had transplanted a few Prickle Pear in a pot. My purpose is to raise enough to protect my land from intruders and making juice from their fruits. Question on you! Why raising them in your garden? Kind of curious?

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

Soaking them in water may have helped but those fire ants are just relentless. I planted the prickly pears in my orchard/garden because it's all fenced in and will keep the critters and deer from eating the fruit.

[@evelynshaw3932]

@@petebeasttexashomesteading Thank you for a speedy reply. I watched another video and I thought these cactus would keep snakes away but found out while another guy was showing how to process the fruits for eating in the wild that he later realized that a Radle snake was curled up underneath by the roots. So please be alert.

[@MeadowDay]

Hi Pete, just found your Chanel and I’m binge watching from Georgetown Tx ( just N of Austin). Really appreciate all the great tips and advice as I’m about to get a DR trimmer for our six acre pastures. I HAD to comment on this cactus video..did I hear you say you ordered this from abroad? There are literally acres of these nasty things all over and everyone tries to get rid of them here as they are invasive and the spikes are nasty. Do you use them as a defensive type of fence?. I got rid of mine and got the prickle free ones instead, they’re exactly the same but no spikes to catch on our running dogs. The flowers are pretty…then you taught me that the pear fruit is edible which I now have to google! Maybe in your part of Texas these things aren’t as prolific as this area. Thanks for the info.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

I also have the type that are more native to Texas but the fruit is not great. The ones I planted produce a really nice sweet prickly pear. The closest ones I found hear grow in Mexico.

[@mickcharlesbeaver4331]

I live in Georgetown, too. Pete has Indian Fig prickly pears (Opuntia ficus-indica), but the common native variety here in Wilco is Texas prickly pear (Opuntia lindheimeri). You can find the imported fruits for sale at La Plaza, if you’d like to try them. The native fruits aren’t as good for fresh eating.

[@Mike_S_Swift]

I was wondering how your orange oil and dawn dish soap on the ants in your tub & greenhouse worked for you? We’re these ants just hiding out in the pots or come back from the ground?

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

All the ants in the greenhouse bed and at the door entrance are dead. These ants in the pots I didn't treat because it might of also killed the cactus.

[@lolitabonita08]

tip for next time...put the pot on the side, roll it and push the sides at the same time, roll until u feel that the plant is loose...set it up and pust up...chances are that the roots are getting out from the bottom of the pot...so cut them first before u try to pull out the plant...lol...kill the ants first lol

[@titanx2511]

What’s the name of the cactus that can handle the cold? I’m looking for one to plant in the ground here in ga.

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

I don't know the name of that particular cactus, it was from a neighbors house and it's a common cactus here in Texas

[@Missdee63]

What is the difference between these and the ones in Az… they grow WILD here

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

The ones I have are from the Mediterranean. But the ones that come from Mexico in the stores are very similar. I'm not familiar with the wild one in Arizona but if they produce large sweet prickly pears, then they should be fine.

[@vintageme298]

I'm in East TN an I HATE FIREANTS ! I Stay on the War Path with them but I can't win but I shall Never Give Up!

[@dagiang60]

The black cat is so cute! How is the orange one?

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

They're both doing great but the orange one (Ginger)is not as affectionate as the black cat (Coco)

[@gotnitro4329]

How long did it take to get that big from seed?

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

About two to three years

[@rickeydobbin6875]

Diatomaceous earth.

[@patrickmiele2086]

Where did you order your prickly pear from that came from Malta?

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

@@patrickmiele2086 It was on eBay some years ago. I have looked for him since but it looks like he's not on eBay anymore.

[@antonchertov6315]

Как его сажать если мороз 10 он у меня пока в помещении❤

[@Irene-ke6to]

I thought you killed all the fire ants in a previous video with you orange oil concoction?

[@petebeasttexashomesteading]

In the beds and near the door entrance I did, but not in the pots. I didn't want to put it in the pots.

[@terriehunt2438]

If you break off rosemary branches and stick a couple of them in each planter, ants will leave! They hate rosemary. The rosemary branches will root and you'll have more rosemary plants too. :)

[@cosgrovebabay]

@@terriehunt2438can you tell the ants living in my rosemary they don’t like it? They are in a raised bed where only rosemary is