1144 



OPUNTIA 



OPUNTIA 



horticulturist, though they are much more widely used 

 and of far more economic importance than many plants 

 which have an established place in pomological litera- 

 ture. From the fact that Opuntias flourish best in 

 regions where experimental horticulture receives little 

 or no attention, the development of desirable economic 

 varieties has not been what might be expected of plants 

 which respond so readily to cultivation and selection, 

 and which may be hybridized with so little difficulty. 



Botanically considered, the fruit is a kind of berry, 

 varying from dry to fleshy and succulent. Morpho- 



1543. Opuntia ramosissima. 



To illustrate fasciation, which is of frequent occurrence 

 in nearly all species of Cacti. 



logically, it is a modified stem with the true seed capsule 

 sunken into its apex; hence it bears leaves and spines, 

 and usually under suitable conditions and frequently in 

 the natural state, when it becomes detached, will bud 

 and grow like a normal stem-cutting. 



History. Opuntias were cult, by the aborigines of 

 America at the time of its discovery, and were early 

 taken by the Spanish explorers to Spain and Spanish 

 colonies in other parts of the world. After becoming 

 established in the Canaries, Azores, and Madeira islands, 

 it was not long before their culture extended to Portu- 

 gal, Spain and the whole littoral region of the Mediter- 

 ranean. From there they spread to Egypt, India, and 

 other parts of southern Asia. In comparatively later 

 times they reached South Africa, Australia, and New 

 South Wales, where they are fast becoming a serious 

 menace to agriculture and grazing. In all the regions 

 above noted they have escaped from cultivation and 

 have become pestiferous weeds. 



Varieties in Cultivation. The want of fixed charac- 

 ters, the great variations in most species under different 

 soil and climatic conditions, and the readiness with 

 which natural hybrids occur, make the identification of 

 cultivated and introduced species so difficult that the 

 considerable literature on this subject is extremely un- 

 certain as to nomenclature. The common names Indian 

 Fig, Barberry Fig, Prickly Pear, arid Tuna, are applied 

 indiscriminately by most people to any flat-jointed Opun- 

 tias, but more particularly to the kinds with edible 

 fruits. 



The two most widely distributed and extensively cul- 

 tivated are O. ficus-Indica and O. Tuna. These plants 

 have often been confused by authors. Much that has 

 been written under the name of one species really applies 

 to the other. They are closely linked together by hybrids, 

 and each has been in cultivation for so long a period 

 that numerous cultural varieties have developed, par- 

 ticularly in Mexico and Sicily. It is possible that the 

 many cultivated forms of both species originated from 

 the same source. 



Although the Mexicans and Indians eat the fruit of 



more than a score of indigenous species, the two named 

 above, with their many cultivated forms, are by far the 

 most desirable and palatable. O. ficus-Indica is prefer- 

 able in most respects to O. Tuna on account of its fewer 

 and smaller spines and usually larger fruit. The latter, 

 however, makes a more formidable hedge, and is more 

 frequently planted in the United States. Hedges of 

 this plant are to be seen at many of the old Spanish 

 missions in Arizona and California, where they were 

 probably first introduced into the United States. O. 

 Ficus-Indica is frequently grown by the Mexican popu- 

 lation of New Mexico, Arizona and California. In south- 

 ern Florida it has escaped from cultivation and become 

 naturalized. The fruits are usually larger and fewer- 

 seeded than in O. Tuna, and are commonly yellow. They 

 frequently measure 3 or 4 in. in length and 2-3 in. in 

 width. Forms of this species about the old missions of 

 southern California vary considerably. One form, 

 known as Tuna Colorado, has an insipid, light crimson- 

 colored fruit, while another, Tuna manse, has a yellow- 

 ish fruit, irregularly mottled with crimson. 



The Fruit Economically Considered. These two 

 Opuntias, and possibly a few other closely allied ones, 

 are extensively grown in Mexico. The fruit begins to 

 ripen in June and July, while the later varieties last 

 until December. The fruit is consumed by all classes 

 and conditions of people. The fine bristles which invest 

 the fruit are usually removed before picking by rubbing 

 them with straw, grass or leaves. The fruit is later 

 picked by the hand, or, in some instances, with wooden 

 tongs. In large plantations, when the fruit is raised for 

 commercial purposes, it is usually harvested with a 

 heavy knife, the workman first cutting off the joint 

 bearing the fruit, and later detaching the separate fruits. 

 In preparing the fruit for the table, a thin slice is cut 

 from each end and a slit made through the paring, join- 

 ing the cut surfaces. The thin paring is easily sepa- 

 rated from the mealy but juicy pulp, and quickly re- 

 moved with the fingers. 



To-day the finest Opuntia fruits are grown in Sicily, 

 where they are one of the most important crops that the 

 island produces. From July to November the peasants 

 live almost entirely on this fruit, and considerable 

 quantities are yearly exported to other countries, some 

 of which finds its way to New York and other American 

 cities. It is grown extensively by the Arabs throughout 

 northern Africa, and forms an important part of their 

 food for a portion of each year. 



Nutritive Value of the fruit. The nutritive value of 

 this fruit ranks high, as shown by the following analy- 

 sis by Wolff: 



Per cent 



Dry substance 21.60 



Ligneous matter 3.70 



Proteid substances 59 



Fatty bodies 1.80 



Sugar 14. 



Yield per Acre. It has been ascertained that some 

 of the best varieties are capable of producing on lean, 

 sandy or rocky soil, ill-suited for growing ordinary 

 crops, as much as 18,000 Ibs. of fruit per acre. When 

 we consider that this is equal to 2,500 Ibs. of sugar, as 

 well as other valuable food constituents, it may be 

 readily seen that the food value from the standpoint of 

 nutrition is considerable. 



Method of Cultu re. Plantations are usually made on 

 dry slopes of hills, as the plants do not thrive where 

 there is much moisture or on heavy clay soils. Joints, 

 cut or broken from the plants, are used instead of seeds, 

 and are planted at distances of 6 to 8 ft. in furrows from 

 6 to 15 ft. apart. No tillage is practiced, as they grow 

 rapidly, and in a few years shade and smother out 

 all other growth. Before planting, the cuttings are 

 exposed in half sunlight from seven to fifteen days, 

 that the*y may partially wither, in order to facilitate 

 rooting. 



An important advantage in the culture of these plants 

 is the regiilarity of the yearly crop. They begin to bear 

 in about three years after planting, and continue in 

 bearing for many years. 



Of the Opuntias indigenous to the United States, none 

 as yet have been grown for fruit, or with an effort to 

 improve them. O. Enqelmannii has a large but poorly- 



