PRICKLY PEAR

a name popularly applied to the edible fruits of several species of " the Opuntia genus of cacti, | native to America, now represented over a great; g | stretch of territory in every part of the world. | They vary largely in size,, economic value, and appearance—from the small e,-.» ved barberry-fig of the little vulgar is species, which. en is hardy as far north as - Ma achusetts, to the treelike plants of sub-tropical and tropical regions. They “¢ Prickly Pears’? have no economic vajue in the North, but they are of large importance in the southwestern United States,: Mexico, and elsewhere, for their fruits, as hedge-plants, and (in selected, nearly spinele varieties) as cattle-food. The Prickly Pear of the South is found in red, yellow, purple, and several other colors. It varies from pear-shape to round, and from an ounce to a pound or more in weight—the most common types ranging from one to three inches in diameter. The skin is, in most kinds, marked by bunches of the small spicules, or spines, which are responsible for the title of the fruit. As a rule, the best are those with the thinnest skins and fewest spicules. The most important species are the ficus-indica and the tuna, which may he described as fleshy, shrub-like or tree-like plants, often of considerable height, with wide, flattened, jointed, succulent branches. In Mexico and Sicily their fruits constitute a large part of the diet of entire communities during the main season of productivene . That of the ficus-indieca is generally oblong or oval, 115 to three tnehes in diameter, with yellowish skin and pink or reddish pulp. That of the tuna is typically pear-shaped or roundish, purple, and from one to 1!., inches in maximum diameter. There are numerous varieties of both species and many hybrids. The ficus-indie a fruits present fewer—and sometimes no—spicules, and average larger, but the two varieties which are most highly esteemed—the purplish red Card on a and the Amarilla, or ‘‘yellow tuna,’’ are, neverthele , of the tuna species. The fruit is eaten raw, plain or in salads, ete., and preserved and pickled with lemons or other fruits. The flesh is a juicy pulp enclosing a number of rather large seeds. The flavor is usually weak but it is distinctly refreshing, and the food value, which includes a sugar percentage of 10 to 15%, is as high as that of most fruits of popular consumption. In the Southwest the purple tunas are frequently employed to color jellies. To prepare the raw fruit for the table, the most convenient method is to cut a slice off each end and slit the skin lengthways —the skin is then easily removed whole. The pulp-seeds are sutticiently large to be objectionable to a good many Americans—who, consequently, prefer the fruit in preserved and other forms made from the seeded fruits -but the Mexiean eats everything inside the skin, and usually part of the latter also, the spicules being previously removed by rubbing with leaves or straw or similar material. The Mexican also cooks or evaporates the seeded pulp to various degrees —producing a sirup known as *‘tuna honey’’; a moderately stiff paste called melcucha; and a very thick paste, or ‘‘cheese,’’ similar to plum and guava ‘‘cheeses.”’ Because of their rapid growth and prolific fruit-bearmg habits, the opuntia cacti present greater commercial and economic po ibilities than those of any other genus. Many experiments are being made with the hope of improving the best varieties so as to make them more generally serviceable, as they flourish in soil and other conditions unfavorable to general plant growth. The Prickly Pear ix also known as India fig, tuna, and barberry-fig. Of these. “Tua fig’? is best confined to the fie us-indica species and hybrids: ‘ttuna’’ is correct only when applied to the tuna species and hybrids: and ‘‘harberry-fig’’? is best restricted to the fruit of the vulgar is.