April showers produce May flowers, as the old saying goes. That adage assumes there are April (or May) showers, but the liquid from above is never a guaranteed certainty.
Some year’s the spring bloom of native plants is influenced by a dry April, a late March frost or a relatively warm winter. Fortunately, there are hardy “late-bloomers” which are barely affected by the weather’s fickle behavior.
Opuntia humifusa, commonly known as the Eastern Prickly Pear or Indian Fig has reflected no problems with the environment’s erratic behavior. Late April to mid-June is usually the prime blooming period for north Florida natives, rain or no rain.
Prickly pear is a true cactus which are native only to the western hemisphere. This plant family varies greatly in size and height depending upon which of the over 200 members is represented.
The pads of prickly pear cactus are inconspicuous in appearance, but its plate-like sections of the stem are often misidentified as leaves. These sections can reach a length up to six inches.
Stem sections remain green as they age and are covered with needle-sharp three inch-long spines or quills. The larger spines are quite capable of inflicting painful wounds.
There are also tiny spines, known as glochids, which are located in the areoles, those small light to dark colored bumps on the pear shaped stem sections. These can cause a lot of irritation if they pierce clothing and attach to the skin surface.
The flowers of this plant are produced in large numbers and create a striking contrast to their earth colored surroundings. The plant will bloom over a period of several weeks, but individual flowers only last one day.
The cup shaped flowers appear on the outermost plate like stem sections and may reach three inches in width. The color most commonly encountered is yellow, but orange and red variations are occasionally seen.
Bright red to purple berries develop from the flowers, appearing in mid to late summer at the plant’s maturity. These plants are well-suited to hot, dry conditions and will tolerate summer droughts.
For best growth it requires a sunny, well-drained site and is tolerant of sandy, alkaline soils which are common in coastal Florida. Prickly pear will only tolerate wet conditions for a very short period of time before root rot becomes a problem. They are never found in swampy areas.
While prickly pear does produce seed, the conditions for germination are very specific. Most of its propagation is accomplished by plant fragmentation.
The plate like sections need only have slight contact with moist sand to initiate rooting and establish a new plant. This reproduction process turns the prickly pear from a seasonal curiosity to a chronic problem for landscape managers, cattlemen and hay producers.
Mowing is a frequent means of weed control and stimulating grass growth. But mowing prickly pears detaches and scatters the pads which rapidly root. Although prickly pear will not form dense canopies or overwhelm desirable forage grasses its rapid spread causes problems, depending on the situation.
The impact on grazing livestock has severe potential because of its barbed quills. Once the quills penetrate they are difficult to remove and may cause infection.
On the positive side, this cactus is eaten by gopher tortoises and is a favorite of pollinators. Additionally, it has no pests or diseases of great concern, so it does not become a reservoir for the spread of problems to other species. Rain or shine, this late bloomer always sticks around to produce bright flowers no matter how the spring turns out.
Enjoyed this article especially since I came from AZ where there are numerous varieties. Didnt realize they were here in the Panhandle.