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Grow your own nopalitos!
While a hard freeze will kill this plant to the ground, I cut off large
(3' to 4' tall) cuttings before such cold is expected and store them (unpotted)
in a corner of the greenhouse until spring. Replant in mid-April
and secure to a stake until they re-root. As a bonus, the stumps
left in the ground will resprout after all but the most severe winters.
Red flowers in mid-spring are visited by hummingbirds. The tender
emerging pads are edible. Look for recipes in authentic Mexican cook
books. Grows in full sun to half-day sun, in
a location with good drainage. Requires no supplemental irrigation
once established.
(Feed with 3 Agriform
21-gram,
2-year fertilizer tablets at the bottom of the hole at planting time.) |