Prickly Pear

Plant of the Week

BY: Elizabeth Noll

Prickly pears are to the Southwest United States what junipers are to the Midwest. They’re in landscaped yards and in abandoned lots; in the desert wilderness and in city gardens. They’re so common that if you live there, you may take them for granted. Unless you’re a gardener, that is! One of the most common species of prickly pear is Opuntia engelmannii, a cactus with thick green pads like spiny Mickey Mouse ears that can spread to form dense thickets. In spring, the pads sprout bright yellow or orange-red flowers. In summer, these turn into purple-red edible fruits about 3 inches long.

Common name: Prickly pear , cactus apple, Engelmann’s prickly pear
Botanical name: Opuntia engelmannii
Plant type: Cactus
Zones: 8 to 12
Height: 4 to 6 feet
Family: Cactaceae

Growing conditions
• Sun: Full sun
• Soil: Well-drained mix of sand, gravel, and garden soil
• Moisture: Dry

Care
• Mulch: None needed.
• Pruning: None needed.
• Fertilizer: None needed.

Propagation
• By cuttings

Pests and diseases
• Possible target for scale insects and mealybugs.
• Leaf spot, black spot, and bacterial soft rot can be problems. Susceptible to root rot if there’s poor drainage.

Garden notes
• Opuntia engelmannii loves a dry, sunny spot. Be sure to put it in a place that doesn’t get nearby traffic, and where pets and children can’t get at it.
• Remove all weeds in the area before planting, as it’s no fun to weed around a prickly pear.
• Learn to use tongs when caring for your cactus. Spines can penetrate even the thickest gloves. And beware of glochids—tiny hairlike spines—as they are even harder to remove from skin than the large spines.

All in the family
• There are about 200 species of Opuntia. Some are ground covers and some are as tall as trees.
• Not all cacti are restricted to the desert. Several are hardy to Zone 6 or 7. At least one species of prickly pear, O. compressa (also called O. humifusa), is hardy to Zone 5.

Where to buy
• Desert Moon Nursery, P.O. Box 600, Veguita, NM 87062, 505-864-0614
• Desert Nursery, 1301 S. Copper, Deming, NM 88030, 505-546-6264
• Mesa Garden, Belen, NM, 505-864-3131, www.mesagarden.com

(Photo by Tracy Walsh)

Comments

By ekolber Wednesday, July 28, 2010 10:50 AM

I live in TX and they are a weed in our pasture how do we get rid of them?

By Frog 123 Tuesday, February 28, 2012 1:54 AM

Hello,
I'm in Fla. My neighbor's will not give me any. The purple bulb's are
edible,and very tasty .I lived in TX for a few year's. The only thing
my best friend said," Dig them up, and put Non Toxic weed repellent in the hole where you dig them up.Her Best Result was Baking Soda Paste! Cheap. But it really did the job!!! She has knocked them down by 80% , using Baking Soda Paste ! Hope I
was of some help.

By jmusser Wednesday, February 29, 2012 8:07 PM

I have one as a houseplant, and I grafted a thanksgiving cactus onto it. I am in zone 6b, Are there any varieties hardy in this zone?

By mtokarchuk Friday, March 02, 2012 5:26 PM

I have had one in my greenhouse for 4 years and no blooms. I live in zone 7. Can anyone tell me how to acheive blooming?

By mtakach Saturday, March 03, 2012 8:58 AM

I have one outside, for the past 10yrs, i live in zone 5 PA. last yr they started to get woody looking...does this mean it is dead or rotting?

MTOKARCHUK, They have bloomed for the past 3 yrs, but have had it for 10 yrs...so as you can see it took 7 yrs to bloom...I have done nothing to it....we have even eatten them...was going to make prickly pear jelly! Good luck!

By ruby2sday Saturday, March 03, 2012 9:50 PM

In north great basin we have a wild type of prickly pear we call a "beaver tail" cactus. Usually only has 3 or 4 pads and is less than a foot tall. The flowers are pretty and the color of the flower is determined by how cold the winter has been. Colder equals darker color. There are not many of them around, they are few and far between. I have never seen one go to fruit.

By joycegordon Monday, March 05, 2012 3:42 PM

I live in TX with multiple acres of prickly pear. It is humorous that someone actually sells the things when we can't give them away. Prickly pear turn woody as they get older. Woody plants are only good for fire wood. A brand new plant can sprout from a dead plant. This is amazing to see but any place an eye (place that has spines) touches the ground, roots begin and a new plant forms. This is true on the green pad as well as the dead pad. In cooler areas of the country, prickly pear do not do well because they are a hot weather, sun loving, drough tolarent plant. You can eat the tuna (that is the name of the pear) as well as the pads, you just have to be real careful and get rid of the spines. Even the spineless varity will have a spine or two so be careful. The small spines are hard to remove. The tuna hold lots of seeds. Animals eat the tuna and leave the seeds behind, starting new plants along their path. How do we get rid of them? There are herbicides that will kill pricky pear but you have to have a liscense to use them. The way we do it is dig them up, or use the tractor and pile them up. Let them dry out and burn them. They are an excellent source of water and they are "chucked full" of vitamines.

By kcomo1956 Tuesday, March 06, 2012 9:54 AM

I'd like to plant a prickly pear, where would I fine one ?

By skits Tuesday, March 06, 2012 12:38 PM

I'm in NE Wisconsin and grew them (I think they're the same) and they have beautiful yellow flowers. Bloom every year! But they also spread like wildfire, so had to dig up most of them. To picky when planted near other plants.

By skits Tuesday, March 06, 2012 12:41 PM

I think you could put a piece in a box and mail it and it would survive. I threw some in my compost (what was I thinking?) and it bloomed there too.