Opuntia ficus indica Origin: This fruit comes from Mexico.
Culture of area: It's cultivated in Mexico and in Mediterrannean Bassin
Description: Prickly Pears grow on a cactus with hase leaves with spine on it, called "raquettes". Flowers are bright yellow and frits are around 6 cm large and crimson. Fruits are very sweeted and riched with vitamine C.
Climate conditions: This plant need a hot and drought climate. It's well adapted to arid lands. It tolerates light frosts.
Culturals Methods: Each plant needs 3 m2 to grow so that aroud 1100 plants per hectares. In average, yields can be 10 or 15 t/ hec. But culture with an adapted irrigation( not a lot) and fertilisation, plant's growth is accelerated and fruits are bigger.
From the fouth year, when cactus is productive, some farmers take flowers from the first bloom off, to have a better and bigger fruits issued from the second bloom.
Harvest made by hand is difficult because of spine.
From the fouth year, when cactus is productive, some farmers take flowers from the first bloom off, to have a better and bigger fruits issued from the second bloom.
Harvest made by hand is difficult because of spine.
Use:
Fresh Fruit: The first use of this plant is for her fresh fruits. Indeed Prickly Pears enjoy the exotic fruit market's growth in Europe and in USA. So everything is done to go towards an industialised production as irigation drop by drop and fertilization. This way, 50000 hec are cultivated in Mexico, 1000 hec in Italia and also in Israel.
This culture is profitable because it demands less investisments than cereals and prices are more interstants. Fruits know a better sucess when varieties without spines would developed.
This culture is profitable because it demands less investisments than cereals and prices are more interstants. Fruits know a better sucess when varieties without spines would developed.
Vegtable : Young "raquettes" thanks to their gustative quality find a new market the USA. They are eaten as a vegetable. That why an industry based on it developing in Mexico. They export 2000/3000 tonnes of these young "raquettes" on 23000 tonnes to the USA.
Forage: Raquettes are also used as forage. They give very good yields, around 30t of dry matter. It's use especially in Northern Africa (Algeria, Maroco...)
Beekeeping: With this culture it's possible to have a beekeeping activity during 3 months in the year. Bees can produce 1 or 4 liters of honey in a beehive. That's a sizeable income.
Medicinal properties: Flowers owns" anti-diurétique" substances. Fruit is a very good "antidiarrhéique" and it can reduce the cholesterol rate and the sensibility to insulin.
Industrial uses: In Chili a sirup is extracted from this fruit.
Biogaz is made thanks to leaves' fermentation.
Prickly pears are also grown because an insect called Cocus cacti lives in it. "Cochenilles" are used to make the only natural red colouring agent authorized in France, the carmitic acid.France import 20 tonnes a year of this colouring agent.
Ecological interests: It's use as fences in Algeriafor cattlle.
This vegetal which can easily grows in desert let to fix the sandy soil in Somalia and so it has fantastic results against erosion.
This vegetal which can easily grows in desert let to fix the sandy soil in Somalia and so it has fantastic results against erosion.
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