I was up and having morning coffee in time to catch some of the Saguaro blooms.
Our Summer road trip is fast approaching, We will leave Tucson maybe as early as the last of May and will be on the road until the first of November, if plans do not change. My dilemma is do I take a bench, shave horse, or both. Then next depending on bench, shave horse or both and how much room is in the tool box or boxes and which tools can I not live without. Anyway there will be a lot of "yes but" going on over the next couple of weeks. Of course one answer could be to say "the hell with it" and buy a guitar so I can become a Rock Star.
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We had winter hardy prickly pears that would put out yellow flowers. They were very short lived on our plants but a nice show.
ReplyDeleteSteve,
DeletePrickly Pear fruit makes a very good jelly and also good sorbet. I haven't had jelly in years (my grandmother made it) but I had some Prickly Pear sorbet not long ago.
All of our different cactus are flowering now, it is a beautiful time of the year.
ken
When you say fruits, do you mean the cone shaped nuggets that the flowers are on?
ReplyDeleteI'll have to find mine and put them back in the sun. We relocated them to a bad place for some construction work and haven't moved them back.
Steve,
DeleteYep, that is the fruit of cactus. It will usually be red once ripe. Another use are the pads called Nopales. A link on how to cook https://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/how-to-cook-cactus-paddles/
ken
These are the ones with the very fine clusters of spines that get in your skin and become invisible, even through gloves. Not going to eat them.
ReplyDeleteA Greek friend of mine explained;
ReplyDeletePut yourself with the wind in your back;
brush thoroughly the needles of the fruit away;
bring a plate and, with a knife, make the fruit fall on the plate.
I don't remember the following steps. You probably then have to blow on the plate before doing anything else.
One can buy those "figues de barbarie" here when it is the right season.
Although it doesn't seem to be the same specie: Opuntia ficus-indica.
Sylvain,
DeleteSame thing, easiest is to use a blow torch to burn the spines off.
In times of drought South Texas ranchers will use propane torches to burn the spines off the pads so the cattle can eat the prickly pear pads.
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