Opuntia engelmannii var. indheimeri - Prickly Pear

The Opuntia engelmannii var. lindheimeri is a robust and dense arborescent prickly pear that stands out for its hardiness and floribundance. This Texan plant is composed of light green to grey-green pads, thin, round and large, often concave, and powerfully armed with formidable golden spines. From spring to summer, and even into autumn, an abundance of cup-shaped flowers bloom, delicate like crumpled silk, displaying a beautiful bright orange color. Its growth is quite rapid and its cultivation, in rocky and well-drained soil, poses no problems. Stunning in a minimalist setting, spectacular against a backdrop of rocks and blue sky, it naturally structures exotic or contemporary landscapes.

The Opuntia engelmannii, a close relative of the Prickly Pear (Opuntia ficus indica), is a succulent plant devoid of true leaves from the cactus family. This botanical species is native to the arid regions of Texas, USA, where it grows along the Rio Grande River and in the surrounding plains. The lindheimeri is a floriferous variety with adult specimens reaching over 2 m (7ft) in all directions under favorable conditions. The vegetation consists of a trunk that can reach 40 cm (16in) in diameter over time, dividing into flattened, thin, wavy and round branches of fairly uniform size, called articles or pads. Their surface, of a slightly glaucous gray-green color, is quite smooth, but abundantly covered with both large and tiny golden prickles called glochides, which are very dangerous when handling. Flowering occurs from June to September with several flowers appearing on the periphery of the pads. Their color is a dazzling orange, almost translucent. On the same plant, there may be flowers that are more or less yellow or orange. They are followed by fruits heavily covered with glochides that turn purple-red when ripe before falling. They are less tasty than the Prickly Pear's fruits, but they remain perfectly edible. To remove the finest spines, pass the fruits over a flame as you would with poultry to clean the skin of any remaining feathers.

Cultivable in almost all regions, this cactus is hardy down to -15°C without protection, but in well-drained, rocky, stony or sandy soil. It will find its place in a large rockery, a gravel bed, or at the edges of a dry garden, where its sharp silhouette will stand out beautifully against a mineral and austere backdrop, populated with some grasses, agaves, Hesperaloe parviflora, and arborescent Euphorbias. Planted as a dense hedge, the Opuntia engelmannii var. lindheimeri will constitute a first-class defensive hedge. It should be kept away from pathways and children, due to its formidable spines, as well as those, transparent and almost invisible to the naked eye, which penetrate our skin with disconcerting ease and are difficult to remove.