Hello Everyone!...Has anyone seen these growing in Zone 5?

Hello all!

I´m new here, also fairly new to Gardening, although I have been around Gardening & plants all my life due to my Mother. Unexpectedly Mom passed away last November, as I was telling Candyce a bit earlier when I responded to her lovely welcome email. Needless to say I felt I needed to keep the Gardens growing...as best I could anyway lol....it was a Dry August, things got a little tricky for a newbie like myself.

Until now I´ve only had a chance to read a few Threads, you all seem really nice!!...... I was rolling at Kassia´s Thread about the Ground hog !! I am sorry he was such a pest, but it made really fun reading!

Anyhoo, while I´m writing here I´d like to share a pic of an unusual Perrenial, unusual for this area anyway....It is Prickly Pear Cactus, this grows right in my Yard, I have a nice patch at the very beginning of my Driveway, where the pic was taken, and also a now small patch in my backyard.

In the Winter the Cactus kind of shrivels up & stays this way until Spring when it perks up again and then Flowers in usually late June. It does multiply & has been here for quite some time, close to 20 years if memory serves me....then I am getting old, so who knows lol....just kidding!!

Thanks for checking out my Thread!

Kecia a/k/a WatchMGrow

O.K. I feel really dumb......I live in Nashua N.H., do I have the correct Zone listed?

Hi Kecia,
Welcome to Dave's. Best of luck with your new gardening venture.

My parents have had prickly pear cacti at their house in zone4b for 15-20 years I would say, so yours should be just fine.

Al

Dunno - you tell me
http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/hzm-ne1.html

Thanks Al!

O.K. I believe I´m technically in Zone 5a......Our Winters are FREEZING, often we have lots of snow.....But no doubt the Cacti Live ! and flourish even!

Just wondering if anyone else has seen them this far North before?

I have a pink one. Bloomed the first time this year.

Ooooooh!!!! I love Pink !.......You must also get some cold weather in N.Y.?Depending on what part of the State you are in possibly more snow than here in N.H.....Guess it isn´t so odd that these Plants adapt to wintering in NE.

May I ask where you found a Pink one Victor?.....Just love pink!

Im going to go try to find a good Map LOL!...still not certain of my exact Zone, it sure gets Cold here in the winter either way.

Not too cold where I am - about 30 miles north of NYC. But cold enough! I can't remember where I bought the pink Cactus - it was online.

Darn near got to freezing last year didn't it Victor.

Zone 5a here is a low of -17 for the coldest.

Hi, Kecia,

I live along the Mississippi River, In Iowa, zone 5a. A well-known restaurant here in town has had a big patch of these Cacti, for the last 30 years, or so. They never do anything to the patch, except put Preen down to control the weeds and dig some out occassionally, to keep the bed in check.

The bed is not particularly attractive (IMHO) most of the year, but sure puts on a show when they're all in bloom. Theirs are yellow blooms too.

We can get down to 25 below zero, here, but generally, our coldest days are 0º- 10º below zero.

Welcome! You'll learn lots on Daves Garden, and make many friends, as well.

Sasha

Hi Kecia,

I have a friend who lives about 5 miles from here who has one in her front bed. We are in the notorious Lake Erie snow belt - only 200 inches last year, it was a little dry - and hers does fine with very little coddling.

Welcome to Dave's, it's a great place to learn about gardening and good people!

Kathleen

Hi Kecia and welcome. I'm new here too. Does yours ever have a chance to set fruit this far north? I know the plant is hardy here. My DH grew up with them and eats the fruit so I was wondering if there was enough time in our shorter summers for the fruit to ripen enough to pick. As to what zone we are all in it keeps changing. This shows how the zones changed from '99 to '06. http://www.arborday.org/media/mapchanges.cfm :) Just click the play button.

my neighbor also has one, I'm a bit south of lake Ontario which I think bumps my zone a little warmer than some surrounding areas.

Such great info, everyone.

Welcome to you, Kecia. You are fitting right in with this group of NEGers!!

When I lived in Arizona, we used to feed Prickly Pear jelly to guests from the East. (but it was too messy to make so we just bought it from the store)

Hi and welcome to the Garden!!

I am in Northern Ontario and have 2 of them that survive my -30F winter days.

Welcome Kecia! Your PP Cactus is lovely! Now I know it grows all over in colder regions I may have to try one!!!

Me, too.
It would look great in one of the bare spots out front. Does it need much sun?

Thanks for all the great info !!......It is neet to hear that others are growing them in colder climates, especially as they seem not to be bothered by the changing seasons.

I agree it isn´t the showiest unless it is blooming, however it is still neet to see it growing in the Northeast at all.

No mine never has gotten to having fruit, what does the fruit look like?

It does do best in lots of sun, doesn´t ever ask for a drop of water other than from rainfall though. The spot I have it in is VERY hot & can get very dry. The thing that I guess amaizes me about it, is that it gets ALL the snow from the Snowplows, salt & all dumped right on it every winter & still comes back & flowers the next June.

Candyce if you would like to try some ever I can hook you up! lol......Unless you´d like to hunt for Pink ones with me next Spring !! lol

Kecia:

I'll take you up on your offer, especially since you mention that it can survive the winter chemical dumping from the town!!