Don't forget about cactus

Particularly the prickly pear cactus (Nopalea) leaf is full of water. Perhaps it might come in handy to know if you are in the desert. I have drank from the prickly pear and it tasted quite good, as I was extremely thirsty at the time.

 

It's funny but I have seen that water in the cactus when I used to watch cartoons. If I remember it correctly, it was Bugs Bunny in the desert who got a branch of cactus and drank water. When I asked if it was true, my older sister said that there is indeed water in the cactus. When we were in Singapore last year, there was an area in Gardens By The Bay, which has giant cacti. The caretaker of the garden said that their cacti grow rapidly because of the fertilizer. When my husband asked about the irrigation, the caretaker said watering the cacti is not a problem because those plants can go for a week without irrigating.

But back to the water, maybe the cactus is the lifesaver of people who are lost in the desert because when you are in dry land, the first thing you will need is water.

 

While there are no indigenous cactus around here, this is still a great piece of information to remember for a few reasons. First, you never know where you are gonna end up far from home when something like that happens. Also, many people have cactus around here for house plants, too. So, if water was in a severe shortage, I would think that would be a possibility, too.