Purple Prickly Pear
Opuntia macrocentra
Purple prickly pear is prized for its violet-tinged pads (deepest in cold and drought) and yellow, red-centered flowers, a striking, drought-proof cactus for hot gardens.
- Family
- Cactaceae
- Type
- shrub
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 2–4 ft
- Spacing
- 3–5 ft apart
- Light
- sun
- Soil moisture
- dry
- Soil pH
- neutral, alkaline
- Bloom
- April, May
- Bloom colors
- yellow
- Wildlife value
- pollinators, songbirds, mammals
- Landscape uses
- foundation
- Native states
- AZ, NM, TX