THE PRICKLY PEAR, ] 441 



may have from one to four or five joints, and may be 

 single or branched, but it is better to select unbranched 

 cuttings with three joints of which the lowest and the 

 lower half of the middle are interred, the upper half of 

 the middle joint and the third or upper joint remain- 

 ing above the ground to form the new tree. The third 

 or upper joint may be double, so that there -may be two 

 joints growing out of the middle joint instead of only one, 

 but a larger number of joints may cause the cutting to 

 become top heavy and bent down, and a crooked stem 

 will be the result. The cuttings will root at any time, 

 but the common practice is to plant them about mid- 

 summer. A hole is made in the ground, from 50 c.m. 

 to i metre wide, and about 30 c.m. deep, it is well 

 watered by hand, and when the water is absorbed two 

 cuttings are inserted, directed slightly outwards, one on 

 each side of the hole, and the soil is filled in to its former 

 level, so that the lower joint and half of the middle one 

 will be covered with soil. The cutting will root in a 

 few days, without requiring any further watering or other 

 attention. The cuttings should be prepared a few days 

 before, and allowed to dry a little, spreading them close 

 to the hole where they are to be planted. This treatment 

 is necessary to cause the wound of the cutting to heal, 

 and prevents the possibility of rot, besides securing a 

 quicker formation of roots. However, the extreme hardi- 

 ness of the prickly pear is proverbial, and cuttings made 

 at any time, even in winter, seldom fail to establish 

 themselves, and indeed cuttings taken in spring with the 

 flowers on, or just fading, strike root at once and the 

 fruit goes on with its development and in due time 

 matures as if nothing has happened. 



Of course, the prickly pear can be propagated by 

 grafting either on itself or on other large species of 

 Opuntia, such as O. 7 una^ 0. maxima^ O polyantha, O. 

 brachyarthra etc., but this method of propagation presents 



