Opuntia macrorhiza
Prairie pricklypear
Family CactaceaeAlso called Twistspine pricklypear, Western pricklypear, Grassland pricklypear
About
Prairie prickly pear is a short, widespread cactus of North American grasslands, forming wide clumps with bright yellow flowers and edible red fruit.
Care at a glance
- Pet safety
- Listed as non-toxic to dogs, cats and horses, but spines and glochids cause injury. General guidance for the genus
- People
- Barbed glochids lodge in skin and irritate; wear gloves when handling. General guidance for the genus
- Light
- Full sun (6+ hours of direct sun); high light indoors. General guidance for the genus
- Water
- Very drought tolerant; avoid soggy soil, which causes root rot. General guidance for the genus
- Soil
- Well-drained sandy or gravelly soil.
- Propagation
- A single detached pad roots readily to form a new plant. General guidance for the genus
- Mature size
- Usually 7.5–12.5 cm tall, spreading to about 1–1.8 m.
“General guidance for the genus” marks advice sourced for the genus as a whole rather than this species.
Field notes
Morphology
One of the shorter Opuntia, usually 7.5–12.5 cm tall and rarely over 30 cm, spreading 30–180 cm in wide clumps. Showy bright yellow flowers often have red marks near the petal bases. Fruits are narrow, red and juicy.
Distribution & habitat
Throughout the US Great Plains from Texas to Minnesota and west into the Rocky Mountain states, with scattered populations in the Mississippi and Ohio valleys, and in northern Mexico. Grows at 600–2,400 m, mostly in grassland.
Habitat
- Altitude
- Not recorded
- Altitude class
- —
- Native to
- United States, Mexico
- IUCN status
- Least concern
Cultivation
- Difficulty
- easy
Text adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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