Species · genus Opuntia · Cactaceae
Plains Prickly-pear
Opuntia polyacantha Haw.
Also known as: Starvation Prickly-pear · Cliff Prickly-pear · Grizzly-bear Prickly-pear · Hairy Prickly-pear · Hedgehog Prickly-pear
Cultivars of O. polyacantha
The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.
No named cultivars catalogued under O. polyacantha 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.
The many-spined prickly pear
Opuntia polyacantha, known as the many-spined prickly pear, is a spreading perennial cactus made up of low mats of flattened, pad-like stem segments. It carries solitary yellow or magenta flowers at the tips of its pads in summer.
Source: RHS
Wild range
This species comes from Canada, the USA, and Mexico. It has also been known under the names Opuntia schweriniana and Opuntia heacockiae, and the common name Heacock's prickly pear.
Source: RHS
Sun, dry spells, dormancy
This cactus wants full light at all times and a sharply-draining, loam-based compost with added sharp sand, or a proprietary cactus mix. Let the compost dry out between waterings through the spring, summer, and early autumn growing period, feeding with a balanced liquid fertiliser three or four times over that stretch. In winter, when the plant is dormant, withhold both water and fertiliser.
Source: RHS
By seed or pad
Propagate this prickly pear by sowing seed in spring, or by rooting stem segments taken in summer. When handling the pads, use folded newspaper rather than bare hands, since the spines are not to be trifled with.
Source: RHS
Pads, spines, and blooms
The mid-green, oval to circular stem segments can reach up to 40cm tall and spread up to 2m across in low mats. Each pad is studded with areoles bearing woolly brown fibres, often armed with spines up to 5cm long. In summer, solitary yellow or magenta flowers up to 7.5cm across appear at the ends of the segments.
Source: RHS
Scale and mealybug watch
Keep an eye out for scale insects and mealybugs, the two pests most likely to trouble this plant.
Source: RHS
Root rot from wet feet
This species is generally free of disease, but poorly drained or overly wet soil can lead to root rot. Sharp drainage is the safeguard.
Source: RHS
No pruning, slow growth
No pruning is needed for this plant. It is slow to reach maturity, typically taking ten to twenty years, and is handled as a patio, container, or conservatory and greenhouse subject in UK growing conditions.
Source: RHS
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
5–32 °C
Gritty, fast-draining cactus mix with extra pumice or sand
Root a detached, callused pad in dry gritty mix
Dilute cactus feed once or twice in spring and summer
Slow
Yellow blooms possible with a bright, dry rest but uncommon indoors
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.
PrimarySources: 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 Plains Prickly-pear 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.
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