Succulent/Cacti Flower Edibility Question

[MotherOfPearl]

Can Hermann's Tortoises eat Mammillaria (Pinchusion flowers)? I was told these are among the easier cacti to grow. I am interested in starting a few, but only if they are edible.

More specifically, here's a link to a seed mix with some photos of the flowers: Mammillaria Seed Mix

 

[Yvonne G]

Normally the flowers on a mammillaria cactus are pretty tiny...I would think it's not worth the effort.

The pictures in your link are pretty, and I love the mamms, however you must realize that these flowers are only about the size of a pea.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

I would try opuntia, they have much bigger flowers and fruit. Faster growing, too. Opuntia humifusa I'm certain will grow in your area and gets to a good size. Opuntia ficus indica is the best kind for eating. You an get your starts at Mexican grocery store. It may grow in NC.

2nd Dan's suggestion...Opuntia is definitely the way to go and either subspecies should grow just fine where you live.

 

[MotherOfPearl]

I would try opuntia, they have much bigger flowers and fruit. Faster growing, too. Opuntia humifusa I'm certain will grow in your area and gets to a good size. Opuntia ficus indica is the best kind for eating. You an get your starts at Mexican grocery store. It may grow in NC.

2nd Dan's suggestion...Opuntia is definitely the way to go and either subspecies should grow just fine where you live.

Thanks, all! I've never gardened before and know very little about succulent species, so these are definitely helpful suggestions. I found some red, yellow, and green fruited Opuntia Ficus Indica seed packs and I think I'm going to give the reds a try!

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

I would try opuntia, they have much bigger flowers and fruit. Faster growing, too. Opuntia humifusa I'm certain will grow in your area and gets to a good size. Opuntia ficus indica is the best kind for eating. You an get your starts at Mexican grocery store. It may grow in NC.

2nd Dan's suggestion...Opuntia is definitely the way to go and either subspecies should grow just fine where you live.

Thanks, all! I've never gardened before and know very little about succulent species, so these are definitely helpful suggestions. I found some red, yellow, and green fruited Opuntia Ficus Indica seed packs and I think I'm going to give the reds a try!

Or buy some nopales from your local ethnic grocery and plant the pad in the dirt...it's that easy to grow 'em.

 

[MotherOfPearl]

I would try opuntia, they have much bigger flowers and fruit. Faster growing, too. Opuntia humifusa I'm certain will grow in your area and gets to a good size. Opuntia ficus indica is the best kind for eating. You an get your starts at Mexican grocery store. It may grow in NC.

2nd Dan's suggestion...Opuntia is definitely the way to go and either subspecies should grow just fine where you live.

Thanks, all! I've never gardened before and know very little about succulent species, so these are definitely helpful suggestions. I found some red, yellow, and green fruited Opuntia Ficus Indica seed packs and I think I'm going to give the reds a try!

Or buy some nopales from your local ethnic grocery and plant the pad in the dirt...it's that easy to grow 'em.

Wow, that does sound easy, haha! I recently bought a giant bag of organic potting soil (I had been using Miracle Grow organic potting soil, but this bag was much bigger) The bag says it contains organic fertilizer. Is this safe to grow my tort's plants in? Also I read that perlite and vermiculite are just volcanic rock, so are organic soils containing these ok?

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Or buy some nopales from your local ethnic grocery and plant the pad in the dirt...it's that easy to grow 'em.

Wow, that does sound easy, haha! I recently bought a giant bag of organic potting soil (I had been using Miracle Grow organic potting soil, but this bag was much bigger) The bag says it contains organic fertilizer. Is this safe to grow my tort's plants in? Also I read that perlite and vermiculite are just volcanic rock, so are organic soils containing these ok?

Would suggest truly organic dirt/fertilzer mixes, as some of the chemicals in Miracle Grow are not actually organic.

Got a yard? If so, just plant the pads about 3 inches into the ground, water them once, and then ignore them...cactus grows best with only the slightest amount of water.

Or, get 5-gallon "painter's buckets" (Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.), drill a few homes in the bottoms, fill them with dirt, plant a pad or two and, again, ignore them.

In a year or so, you'll have plenty...I have 3 cacti per tortoise and just feed the young shoots off the main pads, about 2X a week.

What ignoring a few pads for several years looks like...

What I'm taking to North Carolina in April, 1 pad per container, after about 10 months of being ignored...
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