Opuntia humifusa (Raf.) Raf.
Indian fig, Indian fig prickly pear, mission cactus, Nopal de Castilla, smooth mountain prickly pear, smooth prickly pear, tuberous prickly pear, tuna de Castilla, tuna mansa, Eastern prickly pear
Kingdom Plantae Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom Tracheobionta Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division Magnoliophyta Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class Magnoliopsida Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass Caryophyllidae Cacti, many other succulents, carnivorous plants, and leadworts
Order Caryophyllales Includes cacti, carnations, amaranths, ice plants, and many carnivorous plants
Family Cactaceae Succulent (water-storing) plants, often spiny
Genus Opuntia Prickly pears
Species humifusa Means “strewn on the ground”
About plant names...
Eastern prickly pear is widespread in eastern North America. I first encountered these in an outdoor botanical
garden in Massachusetts (I have since seen them on sandy soil in urban environments), and I was amazed to learn that there are cacti that grow that far north.
Plants: These cacti form low shrubs, sometimes
lying very close to the ground and looking rather unhealthy. Oval stem segments resembling Mickey
Mouse ears are green to red-purple, 1½-4" (4-10 cm) by 1½-2" (4-6 cm), and about ⅜" (1 cm)
thick. Only the upper areoles have spines, which are gray or brownish and
¾-1¾" (2-5 cm) long. (Sometimes there are no spines.)
Flowers: Yellow flowers are up to 1" (3 cm) in diameter. The purplish or reddish fruits, called tunas , are ½-1½" (1.5-4 cm) long.
Fruits: Mature fruits are 1½-2" (3.8-5 cm) long and ½-¾" (1.3-1.9 cm) across,
dull red to reddish brown, and oblanceoloid-oblongoid in shape.
Edibility: The egg-shaped fruits are edible, and
taste a little like watermelon.
References:
Anderson, Edward F., The Cactus Family , Timber Press, 2001 , p. 501
Online References:
Opuntia humifusa at Illinois Wildflowers
Opuntia humifusa on floridata.com
Opuntia humifusa on the USDA Plants Database
Opuntia humifusa on the USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database
Opuntia humifusa on the Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide
Opuntia humifusa at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Opuntia humifusa on Wikipedia
Opuntia humifusa on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site
Opuntia humifusa on eFloras
1/19/2021 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
Older scientific names
Opuntia ficus-indica (Linnaeus) P. Miller 1768
Opuntia ficus-indica
Cactus ficus-indica Linnaeus 1753
Cactus opuntia Linnaeus 1753
Opuntia vulgaris P. Miller 1768
Platyopuntia vulgaris (P. Miller) F. Ritter 1979
Cactus compressus R. A. Salisbury 1796 (illegitimate name)
Opuntia compressa auct. non J.F. Macbr.
Opuntia maxima Salm-Dyck ex A. P. de Candolle 1828
Opuntia cordobensis Spegazzini 1905
Platyopuntia cordobensis (Spegazzini) F. Ritter 1980
Opuntia tuna-blanca Spegazzini 1925
Opuntia compressa J.F. Macbr. var. microsperma (Engelm. & Bigelow) L.D. Benson
Opuntia calcicola Wherry
Opuntia compressa J.F. Macbr. var. allairei (Griffiths) D. Weniger nom. nud.
Opuntia compressa J.F. Macbr. var. fuscoatra (Engelm.) D. Weniger nom. nud.
Opuntia cumulicola Small
Opuntia humifusa (Raf.) Raf. var. humifusa
Opuntia rafinesquei Engelm.
Opuntia compressa McBride 1922
Opuntia compressa J.F. Macbr. var. microsperma (Engelm. & J.M. Bigelow) L.D. Benson
Opuntia humifusa description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.
© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland ≈ 9 × 6" (22 × 14 cm)
6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts ≈ 19 × 12" (48 × 31 cm)
1/19/2021 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland ≈ 24 × 16" (62 × 41 cm)
6/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts ≈ 34 × 31" (85 × 78 cm)
6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts ≈ 21 × 14" (52 × 34 cm)
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland ≈ 3½ × 2½" (9.8 × 6.6 cm)
1/19/2021 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland ≈ 27 × 21" (68 × 52 cm)
4/6/2011 · Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, Druid Hill Park, Baltimore, Maryland ≈ 6 × 9" (15 × 23 cm)
Range:
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