Species · genus Opuntia · Cactaceae

Arborescent Pricklypear

Opuntia leucotricha DC.

Also known as: Aaron's-beard Prickly-pear

Growth habit

succulent shrub or tree

Native range

Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Mexico Southwest

Reference · O. leucotricha

Cultivars of O. leucotricha

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under O. leucotricha 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 succulent shrub or tree cactus native to the arid regions of Mexico, storing water in its pads and rotting easily if kept wet. Plant it in gritty, fast-draining mix and give it the brightest direct light you can offer. Water deeply but infrequently, only once the soil has dried out completely and the pads feel firm rather than plump.

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 14-28d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Direct sun

Water

≈ every 28 days

Humidity

Low — average room

Temperature

7–30 °C

Soil mix

Gritty, fast-draining cactus mix with pumice

Propagation

Root a callused pad in dry, gritty mix

Fertilizing

Dilute low-nitrogen cactus feed once or twice in the growing season

Growth rate

Slow

Flowering

Rarely flowers indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

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.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 14-28d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Arborescent Pricklypear yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.