There are over 30 naturalised opuntia species that could be called prickly pears. They are all noxious weeds except for the edible one-- Opuntia Ficus Indica.
The 3 varieties in the picture are from Sicily. The yellow one Gialla is rated among the top 5 best varieties in the world and is the one I'm looking to breed.
There is a fascinating history regarding the prickly pear and farmers are still hesitant to grow them due the infestations of a variety-- probably--Opunta stricta.
The first arrivals were brought over by the English because they were at war with the Spanish. The Spanish grew prickly pears to grow the cocchineal aphid to make red dye. The first prickly pears arrived in 1788--maybe with the first fleet. The English needed a new source for their red jackets for soldiers as the Spanish had cut off their supply.
We know about the resultant disasters in NSW and QLD but that is no reason not to grow the Ficus indica that is grown around the in temperate and sub-tropical regions.
The Chinese use this prickly pear to stabilise semi-desert areas as well as produce food and stock feed. Israel and Brazil have a lot invested in the prickly pears. Israel exports to Europe and Brazil has a big stock feed industry that used chopped up prickly pear pads with other materials.
