Protector Cactus

Protecting trees and plants from animals

Protector Cactus is a Spanish company based in Badajoz that designs and manufactures a system to protect trees and plants from animal damage. Its main product is an artificial thorn bush made of hardened steel, installed around a trunk or plant to deter livestock and wildlife. The company specializes in reforestation and the regeneration of forests, dehesa woodlands, and pastures, with a system it says is compatible with grazing by different types of livestock.

Products and installation tools

• Protector Cactus: A modular, reusable artificial thorn bush made of L-shaped thorn sections.
• Corona Cactus: A variant of the plant guard.
• Easytied: An accessory for installation.
• Driving tool: A hand tool for setting the support and lifting rods.
• Rod extractor: A hand tool for removing support and fastening rods, including from dry soil.
• Staples: Fastening accessories.

Design and claimed benefits

The company describes the patented system as tested, approved, safe for people and animals, durable, visually unobtrusive, and reusable. It says the guards allow grazing without costly perimeter fencing, cost less than traditional welded-wire cages, and can cut installation time in half. The company also says the design uses less steel than barriers that rely on brute force, improves plant survival, can be installed around unpruned plants, and can reinforce existing welded-wire cages.

Projects and international sales

Protector Cactus reports more than 15 years in business and more than one million guards sold worldwide. It has participated in European projects including LIFE Food & Biodiversity and LIFE Desert-Adapt. The company has received support through the European Regional Development Fund and the INNOCAMARAS program of the Badajoz Chamber of Commerce, with ICEX support for internationalization. Its products have received subsidies in Extremadura, Andalusia, Castile and León, Castile-La Mancha, La Rioja, Portugal, and the United Kingdom, and have been purchased through public tenders in Spain and abroad. The company exports to the United Kingdom, Europe, the United States, and New Zealand.

Protector Cactus designs and supplies plant guards and installation accessories from Badajoz, Spain.