B106 

 (leaf 2) 



erate drought, small amounts of Engelmann pricklypear may be 

 fed straight to supplement other available forage, but when 

 range forage is not available it is necessary to feed larger 

 amounts of this cactus with a pound or two of concentrates for 

 satisfactory results. 5 The plant is a valuable source of water in arid 

 regions. Sheep are said to do well upon it even without water. 

 Various chemical analyses, given in the references cited, show that 

 the water content of the pods or joints of this species is approxi- 

 mately 80 percent. This species also is rich in mineral content and, 

 if eaten too freely, is likely to cause scours. The feed should be 

 prepared only as needed, since it tends to sour readily. 



Engelmann pricklypear js grazed but lightly under normal conditions ; some 

 of the fruit and very young growth being all that is usually eaten. Even 

 sheep, which can utilize the plant to better advantage than cattle, normally use 

 it but lightly. With the exception of this slight use the plant is of value only 

 as emergency feed. Vorhies and Taylor 8 list pricklypear as an important 

 food of jack rabbits and other rodents; 



The fruit of Engelmann pricklypear, though full of seeds, is sweet and 

 edible to human beings, and has been used rather extensively as food by the 

 Indians, being either eaten fresh or dried for winter use. The fruit and 

 young growth of certain varieties are still used locally as food, especially in 

 Mexico where some forms; are cultivated for this purpose. This species is 

 frequently grown as an ornamental in cactus gardens. 



Some species of pricklypear, although less abundant on the range, are prac- 

 tically spineless and, naturally, are more valuable as forage than the spiny 

 forms, but have difficulty maintaining themselves under heavy grazing. Sev- 

 eral spineless species, both native and introduced, are cultivated to some 

 extent as forage plants. The fruit of many species of pricklypear is edible, of 

 good quality and frequently is cultivated for human' consumption, especially in 

 Mexico. 



The round-stemmed species of Opuntia are known as chollas or cane cacti. 

 Opuntia wborescens, one of the most common range species of th,is group, has 

 come in so abundantly on some overgrazed ranges, that it has proved to be a 

 barrier to grazing on rather large areas. This has resulted in efforts: to 

 exterminate the plant from such areas. The spines of chollas are sometimes 

 burned off and the plants used as emergency forage, like pricklypears. Several 

 species of cholla produce an abundance of fruit, which is eaten to some extent 

 by cattle. Because of their excessive spininess, however, livestock ordinarily 

 avoid these plants, except for limited utilization of the fruit and very young 

 growth. 



5 See footnote on preceding page. 



6 Vorhies, C. T., and Taylor, W. P. THE LIFE HISTORIES AND ECOLOGY OP JACK RABBITS, 



LEPUS ALLENI AND LEPUS CALIFOR'NICUS SSI'., IN RELATION TO GRAZING IN ARIZONA. Ariz. 



Agr. Expt. Sta. Tech. Cull. 49 : [471]-587, illus. 1933. 



