It’s a prickly decision whether to add this plant to the garden

By Carol Michel

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Tucked up against
the foundation of
my house, in a place
where presumably no
one will try to walk, is a little
patch of hardy prickly pear cactus,
Opuntia sp. It’s been growing
there for a dozen years or
more, mostly unnoticed except
when it blooms with yellow,
rose-like flowers.
I do notice it, and sometimes
regret it, when I actually touch
any part of the cactus. Though
it looks like it just has big sharp
spines that should be easy to
avoid when touching it, the
prickly pear cactus stems are
actually full of tiny spines called
glochids that will embed themselves
into your skin whenever
you touch it.
From experience, I can tell
you that backing into this cactus
accidently while trimming
a nearby shrub, even with socks
on, will result in hours of trying
to find and remove those tiny
spines from your ankle. I can
also tell you that wearing heavy
suede gloves to touch the prickly
pear cactus will only result in
ruining that pair of gloves and
spending more hours trying to
remove those tiny spines from
your hands.
The only way to safely handle
the prickly pear cactus is to use
pliers or kitchen tongs and never
actually touch it.
So why grow prickly pear
cactus if it is that dangerous?
Though I mostly grow it for
the novelty of it, some people
grow it for its fruit and stems
which are edible. They must, of
course, take special precautions
to remove those tiny spines and
the large spines, too, before preparing
it to eat.
I can’t imagine a garden center
trying to sell prickly pear
cactus, given how easy it is to
get stuck by one. The only way
I know of to get a prickly pear
cactus is as a pass-along plant
from another gardener, which
is how I got mine. But whenever
anyone asks for a start of
it, I quiz them about where they
plan to plant it and if there is the
possibility of any kids, grandkids,
or dogs accidently touching
it. If there is, I won’t give
them any but invite them to see
the blooms on mine which usually
appear in early to mid-June.

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