Opuntia atrispina — *Opuntia* *atrispina*

Griffiths, Annual Report Missouri Botanical Garden 21: 172, 1910

Holotype, Isotype, Herbarium; Herbarium; Herbarium; Herbarium; Herbarium; Herbarium; Drawing (Britton and Rose, v1 1919, plate XXV, top right)

Original Citation

What is Opuntia atrispina?

Opuntia atrispina is an early flowering, attractive prickly pear cactus from Texas and adjacent Mexico.

Details

Plants may be up to 90 cm tall, but more normally they are 50 cm or less. They may spread to 1(1.5) m. Cladodes on this cactus are green and 10-15 cm wide by 10-20 cm long and egg-shaped, obovate, or subcircular. The plants are densely branched. A larger spine (t0 25 mm) is often subtended by a shorter spine (15 mm). Shorter spines to 6 mm may be below the larger spines. The round spines of this Opuntia are unique because they are a distinctive rich dark red-brown, dark brown, or even jet black at their bases and light tan or yellow on their distal portions. The transition in color is abrupt, and this two-tone coloring provides an attractive and distinctive look. Glochids are scattered throughout the areole.

The plant flowers early compared to sympatric opuntias. Fully opened flowers are 4-5 cm across. Filaments are yellowish distally and greenish proximally. The style is white. Stigmas are yellow, greenish-yellow, or even cream-colored. The flowers are distinctive because they open cream-colored or white-yellow and change to salmon, pink, red, or even tan-pink. Moreover, newly opened flowers can have a hint of green in the center. The fruit is red-purple with a greenish pulp and smallish.

O. atrispina is diploid.

Other Notes

The distribution of this prickly pear is limited in the United States, extending from the Uvalde, Texas area to near Del Rio and Langtry, TX. It has a larger distribution in Mexico.

Single plants may wear flowers of three or more cheerful colors as the flowers age making this Opuntia a good garden plant. Ultimate hardiness is unknown, but perhaps it is hardy to zero F.