Species · genus Opuntia · Cactaceae
Ellisiana
Opuntia cacanapa Griffiths & Hare
Also known as: Spineless Prickly Pear · Tiger Tongue
Cultivars of O. cacanapa
The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.
No named cultivars catalogued under O. cacanapa yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.
Guide
The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.
A Texan Prickly Pear
This is Opuntia engelmannii var. cacanapa, a succulent shrub or subshrub in the cactus family, published under this name in 1970 by D. Weniger. It is also known by its older names, Opuntia cacanapa and Opuntia ellisiana, reflecting a tangled history of reclassification.
Source: Kew
Native to the Borderlands
This variety is native to southern Texas and northeastern Mexico, where it grows in desert and dry shrubland. It has also been introduced into Arizona, extending its presence a little further west than its original range.
Source: Kew
The Pads We Eat
Under its common name, Texas prickly pear, this Opuntia is one of the species whose pads are harvested as nopales, the fleshy leaf-like segments prized in cooking once their spiny skin is removed. It belongs to a very large and diverse genus, with nearly sixty species of prickly pear counted in all. The pads themselves are the culinary draw here, showing up in tacos and juices once cleaned of their bristles.
Source: Epic Gardening
Care recipe
The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.
Care notes are early — not yet verified
- Light
- ai:claude-opus-4-8
- Water
- ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-30d)
- Humidity
- ai:claude-opus-4-8
- Soil
- ai:claude-fable-5
- Care
- ai:claude-fable-5
Direct sun
≈ every 30 days
Low — average room
7–35 °C
Sharp, gritty cactus mix with excellent drainage
Rooting pads after the cut end has callused
Dilute cactus feed once or twice through summer
Moderate
Yellow flowers in early summer with strong light
Not yet documented
This is where toxicity lives — every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.
Reference images
Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.
Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-30d) · ai:claude-fable-5
Kept true by its growers
Every fact here carries its source. Grow Ellisiana yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — and a clear photo of your plant are exactly what keep this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.
Sign in to add what you know →