Today we’re visiting with Noah Donovan, who loves growing cacti. We’ve featured plenty of cactus-filled gardens on the GPOD, usually in places like Arizona or California. Noah is unusual in that he has mastered the art of growing these beautiful, living sculptures in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York.
The eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa, Zones 4–9) is native to a wide swath of eastern North America and is certainly the easiest to grow in cold, rainy climates that aren’t suitable for many other species of cactus.
Eastern prickly pear doesn’t just have fascinating, sculptural stems; it is incredibly showy when in full bloom. The flowers don’t last long, but they are beautiful and much loved by bees and other pollinators. The flowers are followed by the fruits that give prickly pears their common name, though this species has smaller, less tasty fruits than some of the western species.
The pads of prickly pears are like water balloons. In the winter, the water they contain could freeze and damage the plants, so eastern prickly pear shrivels and collapses as cold weather approaches.
Escobaria missouriensis is native to the northern Great Plains and can survive extreme winter cold (hardy into Zone 5 or even 4), though it is particularly sensitive to wet conditions during the winter.
Echinocereus viridiflorus v. correllii is another species from farther west that can survive quite a bit of cold but is more sensitive to wet conditions. These are five-year-old plants Noah grew from seed before going into their first winter outside as a test of hardiness.
Though you can grow cacti in cold, wet climates, they’ll never be quite as dramatic as this forest of cacti in California.
Ever seen a cactus seedling? This is Noah’s own hybrid of Opuntia humifusa and Opuntia polyacantha. The seedling looks like any other plant until the bizarre cactus stem emerges from between the cotyledons.
Quita, Noah’s dog, helps him harvest pads from Opuntia humifusa to pot up for sale.
Cacti may be prickly on the outside, but if you love them they’ll sometimes send you hearts!
Some of Noah’s cactus collection lives inside, sheltered from the elements, like this Ferocactus grandis.
If you want to see more of Noah’s cacti, check out his instagram: @noahblazedonovan
Have a garden you’d like to share?
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening!
Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here.
Fine Gardening Recommended Products
Corona® Multi-Purpose Metal Mini Garden Shovel
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
The Crevice Garden: How to make the perfect home for plants from rocky places
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
Comments
Great photos of your cacti, and I never saw a cactus seedling until now!
Interesting to learn why the Northern Prickly Pear shrivels and collapses....I used to see one my neighbor had to that and I used to think it was a goner...then it would bounce right back and be firm and bloom!
Oh and such nice look'n dog...you can tell he's enjoying the outdoors garden activities with you.
Noah, I'm with you, Cacti may not have the structural beauty of other plants, but they don't require a lot of work, are intriguing in shape, size and awesome flowers.
Thanks for sharing.
Wonderful and those yellow blooms are spectacular! Quita is quite a handsome gardening companion, too. I think it's amazing that you've accomplished this so far north - it's fascinating.
Log in or create an account to post a comment.
Sign up Log in