Barbary fig, the cactus with paddles and prickly pear fruits

Flat blue-green pads shaped like ping-pong paddles carry the spines, the spring-to-summer flowers and then the edible fleshy fruits sold as prickly pears. Barbary fig (Opuntia ficus-indica) reaches the size of a tree in a dry garden, but only where it never drops below 50°F (10°C): full sun and light soil are what bring the harvest.

Barbary fig at a glance

Name	Opuntia ficus-indica
Family	Cactaceae
Type	perennial cactus
Height	15 feet (5 m) and more
Soil	light, well-draining, any pH
Hardiness	not hardy (minimum 50°F or 10 °C)
Flowering	spring, summer
Foliage	evergreen
Exposure	full sun

Barbary fig is a perennial cactus that grows as large as a regular tree. Its blue-green stems are formed by pads (the flat portions that look like ping-pong paddles). The blooming for this cactus starts in spring and continues throughout the entire summer. Edible fleshy fruits follow suit: the barbary figs.

Planting a barbary fig tree

Opuntia ficus‑indica won’t grow in just any climate. Indeed, it isn’t hardy at all, to the point that it needs temperatures higher than 50°F (10°C). As a consequence, set it up in full sun so that it can get all the light and heat it needs to thrive.

Like many other perennial cacti, Barbary fig is vulnerable to excess moisture. It must thus be planted in well-draining, light soil. The pH doesn’t matter, anything will do. Once you’ve selected the right spot, the planting itself is pretty straightforward for your barbary fig:

• Favor planting in spring.
• Dig a hole about 8 inches (20 cm) deep.
• Feel free to add soil mix and sand to increase drainage.
• After removing the pot, tease the clump open a bit and release a few roots so that they may spread more readily.
• Settle the plant down in the hole and backfill, pressing the soil down as you go.
• Depending on how moist the soil is, you might want to water just once at the start.

Growing a barbary fig tree in pots isn’t impossible. However, it grows very large when it matures and will still have lots of spikes and pricks: repotting and moving the pot will get increasingly difficult.

Caring for barbary fig

Since it doesn’t fear drought, you won’t need to water your barbary fig. If it is set up in a pot, you’ll have to:

• water only when the surface of the substrate has dried up;
• add special fertilizer 3 to 4 times a year, during the growth phase (spring, summer, fall);
• avoid both watering and fertilizing during winter.

Pruning:

You won’t need to prune your barbary fig.

Propagating barbary fig:

You can multiply your plant either through seed or through stem cuttings in spring or summer.

• Here’s how to make it flower

Diseases and pests:

Barbary fig is a resistant perennial. It generally doesn’t fall sick. Nonetheless, there is one situation that is sure to kill it: root rot due to insufficient drainage in the soil. Regarding pests, you’ll have to stay on the lookout for scale insects, they’ll quickly overrun your plant.

Barbary fig through the year

This cactus asks for very little, but the little it asks changes from one season to the next. Here is what each period of the year calls for.

Potted specimens are the exception: water them only once the surface of the substrate has dried up.

Landscaping and pairing

The shape, size and growing requirements of the Barbary fig tree make it an excellent choice for dry gardens. Compose a wonderful exotic landscape together with:

• trees and shrubs such as eucalyptus, fragrant santolina, pineapple broom, etc.
• or other perennials such as Agave, Aloe, Kniphofia, alien-like spurge, succulent plants, etc.

• Keep the plant well back from paths, doorways and play areas, because the glochids detach on contact and brushing past a pad is enough to pick them up.
• Dense, thorny shrubs such as hawthorn, blackthorn, or holly have long been planted as boundary hedges along property lines, where their spiny growth forms a barrier to livestock and intruders.
• Mediterranean herbs and alpine plants generally thrive in raised beds, rockeries and sunny slopes, where sharp drainage keeps their roots clear of the standing winter moisture that commonly causes rot.
• Choose companions with similar needs, since Barbary fig tolerates and even benefits from moderate summer irrigation in well-drained soil, but frequent heavy watering or poorly drained ground invites root and stem rot.

Barbary fig cultivars

Common names – barbary fig, Mickey Mouse cactus, prickly pear, tree cactus

Opuntia ficus‑indica is traded through a few different cultivars. The main difference between them is the color of their fruits:

• ‘Sulfarina’ has yellow fruits;
• ‘Sanguigna’ has violet-red fruits;
• ‘Muscaredda’ bears whitish fruits.

There are also quite a lot of hybrids, and a relative often sold as houseplants is Opuntia vulgaris.

→ Read also: health benefits of Barbary fig

• Because Opuntia ficus-indica often reproduces by facultative nucellar apomixis and polyembryony, many seedlings are maternal clones matching the parent’s fruit colour, while the sexually derived minority can vary.
• Spineless selections still carry glochids on pads and fruit, so keep the gloves on anyway.
• Never dump unwanted pads over a wall or on open ground, as they root where they land and this cactus is classed as invasive in several dry regions.

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