Species · genus Opuntia · Cactaceae

Twistspine Pricklypear

Opuntia macrorhiza Engelm.

Also known as: Grassland Pricklypear · Plains Twistspine Pricklypear · Western Prickly Pear · Bigroot Pricky Pear · Prairie Pricklypear

Growth habit

succulent subshrub

Native range

Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Mexico Northeast, Mexico Northwest, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin

Reference · O. macrorhiza

Cultivars of O. macrorhiza

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

No named cultivars catalogued under O. macrorhiza 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 cold-hardy prickly pear from arid and semi-arid North America, this succulent subshrub stores water in its pads and rots quickly if kept moist. Plant it in gritty, fast-draining mix and give it the brightest, most direct light you have. Water deeply only when the mix has gone completely dry, roughly every 2 to 4 weeks in active growth, and water far less in winter dormancy.

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

Light

Direct sun

Water

≈ every 30 days

Humidity

Low — average room

Temperature

5–30 °C

Soil mix

Sharp-draining cactus mix with coarse sand and grit

Propagation

Root a callused pad in dry 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 14-30d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Twistspine 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.