You can sow your nopal from seeds or stems. Discover the different stages here!
If you want to plant nopal at home, then read on. Here we offer you a complete guide on how to do it. So you can enjoy this delicious vegetable whenever you want, since it will be available to you in your garden.
Nopal is cultivated for food, animal and even pharmaceutical purposes. You can grow it at home and satisfy your cravings.
How to plant nopal at home?
The nopal is a plant that is easy to plant and maintain. Its scientific name is Opuntia fig-indica and, as its appearance reveals, it is a cactus. It is also an ornamental plant, thanks to its very showy flowers.
You can sow it in a pot or directly in the ground in your garden. Discover above how to plant a nopal, in order to plant it at home!
[/atomik -lu-aussi ]
Step by step to sow the seeds
Growing the seeds of the nopal is one of the methods you can follow to take advantage of this plant, but This is the one that will take the longest to show results..
You can buy the seeds in a specialized store or collect those from a nopal that you have consumed.
Follow these steps to plant:
- Choose where you will plant your cactus: pot or garden.
- Place the seeds directly into the potting soil, making sure to leave about 3 centimeters between each seed.
- With your fingers, press them gently to bury them.
- Lightly cover the seeds with soil. The additional layer of substrate should be about 6 millimeters.
- Soak the soil with a little water. The soil should be moist, but not too much.
Steps for planting a cactus pad
If you have a stem of nopal, rather than eating it, plant it. Here’s how you should do it:
- Make sure the rod is in good condition.
- Prepare the soil where you will grow the nopal, whether in pots or in the garden, and sow.
- Don’t water it while it is developing strong roots. The plant will draw the liquid it needs from the deposit it has within itself.
- Be patient and enjoy the growing process.
Take care of your nopal
After planting your nopal, you must ensure some basic care so that the plant grows healthy and you can consume it with peace of mind. Check them out below.
Take care of the substrate
Nopal requires a fertile substrate with good drainage. This can be achieved in several ways. One of them is to mix vermiculite (60%), coco or peat (20%) and sandy soil (20%). Don’t forget to add organic matter or fertilizer, such as worm humus.
Finally, be sure to maintain the same quality of substrate over the years. Do not forget that the plant draws nutrients from it, which causes it to lose its permeability and oxygen. If this happens, it will affect the development.
Add fertilizer
The nopal should be fertilized once a month, preferably with a liquid product. Keep in mind that you should not use fertilizer during the winter.
In addition, it prefers nitrogen fertilizers during sowing and those containing phosphate and potassium before and after flowering. Choose one with a very low concentration.
Give it lots of light
The nopal is a plant that generally grows in arid areas, where it enjoys good exposure to the sun. When grown at home, similar conditions should be provided, so place it in an area where it receives direct light.
However, in winter you need to keep the plant in the shade. In this season, the leaves could be scorched by the combination of frost and sun.
[/atomik -lu-aussi ]
Trim if necessary
The nopal grows a lot and, if you let it, it will grow easily. If you prefer to keep it under control and in a certain shape, prune it. The leaves you take will be used to propagate it, if they are in good condition.
Take advantage of pruning to remove damaged or faded flowers and stems. The best will be to prevent the plant from continuing to exert itself and take up nutrients that will go to these damaged areas.
Why plant nopal at home?
The consumption of nopal contributes to better health. Indeed, nopal is rich in vitamins of type A, B and C, as well as minerals (magnesium, sodium, calcium and iron). On the other hand, it is a food that provides fiber.
Before starting the cultivation, you must bear in mind important aspects such as the type of substrate, which must guarantee very good drainage. Likewise, it is necessary that the plant receives good exposure to the sun, especially during the first phase of its growth.
If you have made the decision to sow cacti from seed, you should keep the substrate moist and bury them in a shady place. It is a longer method that requires patience. However, it brings the satisfaction of manual work.
This might interest you…