Photo: Stan Shebs — CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Survives zone 2 through 8
Prickly-pear fruit sweet and seedy; young pads as a vegetable. ⚠ Glochids.
- Hardiness
- Zone 2 to 8
- Habit
- Groundcover
- Edible part
- Seed, Fruit
- Ripens
- Late summer–autumn
- Mature size
- Low/spreading; EXCELLENT in containers
- Light
- Full sun (open-ground desert/glade)
- Soil pH
- 6.5–8.0 (neutral–alkaline, sharp drainage)
- Environment
- Temperate
- Status
- Wild
- Years to fruit
- 2–3 yrs
- Pollination
- Self-fertile
Growing guide
Fertilizing. Needs little to no supplemental feeding in lean, unamended soil; if fed at all, use a sparing, low-nitrogen application during the growing season only — excess nitrogen produces soft tissue that is more prone to winter dieback in an otherwise extremely cold-hardy cactus.
How it spreads. Spreads clonally and readily: pads detach at the slightest touch (even wind, rain, or animal contact) and root wherever they land, gradually building sprawling mats or colonies; this trait has made it a listed noxious weed in Nebraska, so give it room or contain it.
Growing tips. Pads and fruit carry sharp spines and nearly invisible glochids that embed in skin, so handle with thick gloves or tongs, especially when transplanting. It needs open, sunny, barren-to-rocky ground and is best kept away from taller or denser plants that can crowd it out; it is among the most cold-hardy cacti in North America.