Opuntia species in Bulgaria
In Bulgaria, Opuntia species are popular ornamental species grown in gardens and other amenity areas. Three alien species of Opuntia (Cactaceae) were studied in a locality in Mt Lozenska, Mt Sredna Gora (Western) floristic region in Bulgaria. Opuntia engelmannii is native to North America and is commonly grown as an ornamental in gardens in Mediterranean regions. The species is invasive in Australia, Kenya, Namibia and South Africa, and in the EPPO region in Italy and Spain. It is also reported from France and Georgia. Opuntia engelmannii is reported from Bulgaria in 1984 but no precise location was given, and it is possible this report was a misidentification. In Bulgaria, several dozen shrubs of varying size were recorded in open stony slopes on Mt Lozenska. Opuntia fragilis is a low growing mat forming species also native to North America. In Bulgaria, the species was found on Mt Lozenska, in open stony and eroded places on a slope with siliceous bedrock. Several dozen mats of varying sizes are reported from this area. This is the first time the species is reported to occur in natural habitats in Bulgaria. In addition, Opuntia humifusa is reported from the same location (it has been previously reported from Bulgaria) and it is the most abundant and widespread of the three species in Mt. Lozenska. It is native to North America and locally established in Croatia, Germany, Georgia (EPPO 2010/021) and Spain and widely established in France, Italy and Switzerland.
Sources
Naydenova T, Vladimirov V, Bancheva S (2019) Contribution to the knowledge of naturalised Opuntia species (Cactaceae) in the Bulgarian flora. Phytologia Balcanica 25, 39-46.