Botanical name: Opuntia cacanapa ‘Ellisiana’
This edible plant has oval, gray-green pads that are blushed with purple; vibrant yellow flowers in spring; virtually spineless, but handle pads carefully; no glochids on the pads.
Other names: Tiger Tongue Prickly Pear
- Characteristics
- Features and Attributes
- Planting and Growing
Characteristics
| Hardiness zone | 6a |
|---|---|
| Flower color | yellow |
| Foliage type | evergreen |
| Plant form | spreading |
| Mature height | 3 feet (4 feet with the flowers) |
| Spread | 6 feet |
| Light requirements | full sun |
| Moisture requirements | dry |
| Plant origin | North American native |
Ornamental Features
Ellisiana Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus features showy yellow flowers with orange overtones at the ends of the stems in mid summer. Its attractive succulent oval leaves remain grayish green in color throughout the year. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.
Landscape Attributes
Ellisiana Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus is an herbaceous evergreen perennial with a ground-hugging habit of growth. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other garden plants with finer foliage.
This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and should never be pruned except to remove any dieback, as it tends not to take pruning well. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Ellisiana Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Accent, Mass Planting, Rock/Alpine Gardens, General Garden Use, Naturalizing And Woodland Gardens, Container Planting
Planting and Growing
Ellisiana Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus will grow to be about 3 feet tall at maturity extending to 4 feet tall with the flowers, with a spread of 6 feet. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 5 years.
This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It requires an extremely dry, well-drained growing location, and will usually die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in sandy soils. It is quite intolerant of urban pollution, therefore inner city or urban streetside plantings are best avoided. This is a selection of a native North American species.
Ellisiana Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
