Cactus plants are native to the Americas, and the one below is growing on a street corner, across the intesection from a church, in Morehead City, North Carolina. It's called a prickly pear cactus.
When you think of American cacti, you probably think of the arid southwestern part of the United States, and not the humid Atlantic coast. But prickly pear species (Opuntia) are native to the East Coast from Florida north to at least New York. Another local cactus is a small plant we call a pear pad. You have to be careful not to step on one when you are going around barefoot on sandy ground.
Above is a close-up of the same plant. The climate of coastal North Carolina is hot compared to Saint-Aignan's, and it's characterized not by persistent dampness but by heavy downpours of rain year-round, alternating with bright sunshine. I guess the cactus plants like that kind of climate and the area's sandy soil.
Cela ressemble à l'Opuntia ficus-indica qui donne les figues de Barbarie. On en trouve beaucoup dans les pays méditerranéens.
ReplyDeleteBien cordialement
Je pense que c'est la même plante, d'origine nord-américaine.
DeleteIt was a terrible pest species here. A snip from Wikipedia "rendering 40,000 km2 of farming land unproductive". A successful biological control was found in South America, with the cactoblastis moth larvae almost eradicating prickly pear here. I saw rather too much of along a country railway line just last week.
ReplyDeletePlants brought in from other parts of the world often end up being pests. Australians I know who live here are dumbfounded that a chain of gardening businesses is called Lantana. I guess the North American locust/acacia plants here could be considered pests too.
DeleteThe "pear pad" cactus may be Opuntia humifusa (Devil's-tongue) or a variety thereof and, as you say, it is native to the east of North America. It is even present in the Canadian province of Ontario. The Devil's tongue is the one I brought you back from Virginia some years ago and is growing now in your yard. It can stand temperatures below 10°F (-12°C)!
ReplyDeleteThe cactus pictured here has round pads whereas Devil's tongue's are elongated, so it is probably a different variety of Opuntia.
Oh, I realize now that a house near me grows this on the corner of their yard. Good to know the name :)
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your Raclette post, too!
We have one in our neighborhood also. I like them in small amounts.
ReplyDeleteWe harvest the young cactus leaves/paddles to eat. The paddles, called nopales, are quite popular in some Mexican cuisines. Our particular Opuntia has almost no spines, making it easy to prepare. The taste is similar to green beans or asparagus with a slightly citrusy tang. The drawback is that it can be quite slimy (like okra) if you don't dry cook it first.
ReplyDeleteIn Mexico's border towns with the U.S. like Mexicali there are street vendors selling nopales in small plastic bags. I tried that once in an omelet and it was pretty good.
ReplyDeleteWilma and chm beat me to it. I was going to say you often see nopales, the pear pads, on the menu at Mexican restaurants in the southwest.
ReplyDeleteAs for lantana, that is used as a flowering plant in the desert southwest of the states.
And in Texas the fruit is used to make jam. You'll often see it in specialty stores.
ReplyDeleteOur local Safeway sells prickly pear pads and fruit in the produce department alongside the green beans and carrots. Lots of Latinos here in NorCal.
ReplyDeleteHere's a link to a page about three N.C. prickly pad species.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting article. So it looks like the cactus pictured in your linked photo might be the cocklebur prickly pear (Opuntia pusilla) rather than the Devil's tongue (Opuntia humifusa) since its pads seem to be short, somewhat cylindrical and not flat.
DeleteI like the Prickly Pear .. living in Arizona as a small child, I have a healthy respect for cacti ..
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it would be allowed, but those are delicious. Burn the stickers off over a gas burner or fireplace. I stick on a fork and turn all around. Don't handle them without gloves till the stickers are burned off. Then remove the outer skin and a lovely fruit awaits. Especially good chilled. Havent read any other posts yet but I hope this isn't a repeat.
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