She Never Met a Cactus She Didn’t Like

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

The title is a quote from this video. No truer words have been spoken.

Spring must be in the air because I bought two cactus plants this week. The first is some kind of barrel cactus with beautiful burgundy spines (photos are forthcoming). The second is the plant seen in the photo above. I just bought it not an hour ago on an outing to the post office. It’s a Rhipsalis capilliformis, and the forth pencil cactus I have grown. I kind of like them, a lot. You can see another in my collection over here.

This week’s purchasing frenzy stems from a sudden impulse to fill my workspace with cheery cut flowers. And I’m not the only one. Over the course of the week, I passed several people on the street carrying bouquets. However, I generally don’t buy cut flowers due to the many problems with the floral industry and because I am inherently cheap. Frankly, I can get a living plant that will offer years of joy for the same price as a bunch of flowers that will be in the compost bin next week. The choice seems obvious.

Besides, the other cactus (not pictured) is blooming! Real blooms, not one of those stuck-on with super glue messes.

Gayla Trail
Gayla is a writer, photographer, and former graphic designer with a background in the Fine Arts, cultural criticism, and ecology. She is the author, photographer, and designer of best-selling books on gardening, cooking, and preserving.

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12 thoughts on “She Never Met a Cactus She Didn’t Like

  1. Interesting, I saw a pencil cactus at a neighbor’s house and it reminded me of a dish that we had when I first visited Texas — that I think was breaded and deep-fried cactus! Are they edible, or was the one we had a different family?

  2. Karl: I’m not sure, but it’s certainly possible.

    I’ve had paddle cactus (opuntia) many times and prepared in a variety of ways (cooked, salads, fried), buts never pencil cactus.

    I should add that “pencil cactus” is a common term that covers several different plants. Perhaps there is an edible one? Wouldn’t want to suggest anyone go out and try without knowledge, of course, since there are plenty of hallucinogenic and toxic cactus plants out there too.

  3. I had a friend who had one of the “super glued on messes” on her kitchen window sill. She commented to her brother one day how proud she was that it was still blooming. Then her brother pointed out that it wasn’t a real flower. She was significantly less proud.

  4. IVE HEARD THAT THE SAP FROM THIS PLANT IS CAUSTIC AND CAN CAUSE BURNS. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF PETS AND CHILDREN AND WEAR GLOVES WHEN PRUNING. I ALSO RECOMMEND PRUNING OUTSIDE BECAUSE IT BLEEDS A LOT AND CAN DAMAGE CARPET/WOOD FLOORS, ETC. OTHERWISE A REALLY AWESOME PLANT!

  5. Like many plants in the same family, some are edible some are not. This one obviously as Gayla read the tag is not, but there are varieties around here in Texas that are. My grandmother’s cactus garden was the source of envy for many of her neighbors at the plants and flowers can be used for a good many things.

    Peyote can be consumed, but I don’t recommend it since it’s consumption is for hallucenogenic effects. It was a major player in tribal rituals (especially those deemed for seeking “visions” and inward reflection).

    I have prickly pear. My son doesn’t care for it; too “sticky” (he hasn’t met the new Gardenia Rose Bush that just went in ;P) But once it’s dethorned, it’s edible. All of it. I’ve had the cactus it’s self grilled. Pretty good. The flowers are edible too or you can use them to make a wonderful pinkish/purple dye.

  6. Pencil cactus! A few years ago, at a Toronto herb fair, you gave me a cutting of a pencil cactus. It’s grown very, very slowly, but surely, and it’s one of my favourite plants. I never knew what to call it – thanks, Gayla.

  7. I’ve had some of my cacti 20+ years. It’s not very easy wrestling with them when it comes time to transplant them; which will be this Spring.

  8. I’m glad that you had a scientific name for your Rhipsalis. I have a lot of old tropical cacti from cutings from friends and plant sales so I don’t spend a lot of money on them. Check out the epiphyllums, etc. on this website: http://www.epiforum.com. Many threads of plant information and maybe you can provoke a discussion on whether any are edible. But some like may plants have been kept for so many years and handed down to friends and relatives, that it would be almost like cannibalism. The dragon fruit that is so brilliantly colored outside (hot pink with greenish “spines”) and white inside with black seeds is the fruit of a cactus plant.

  9. the pencil cactus will grow to be HUGE if you let it. it also, when cut, leaks a milky white substance that is very irritating to skin and mucous membranes. many people are “allergic” (i’m not sure if it’s a true allergy) to that white substance. i have a gigantic pencil cactus in my garden that i planted when it was about 6 inches tall that is now about 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide. the only reason it’s not bigger is that it is still in a pot. i got the white stuff on my arm once and my lips and inside my mouth were burning and tingling like i had eaten hot peppers. i don’t think anything worse happens ( like anaphylaxis or anything) if exposed, just that burning tingling.

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