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In late June or early July, it's impossible to miss the large yellow
wax paper like flowers of the prickly pear cactus. Many people find it
hard to believe that this species is native in an area as humid as
Illinois but they thrive anywhere there is full sun, and pure well
drained sand.
As known as the 'devil's tongue', 'tuna pear' or 'Indian fig', the prickly pear grows in xeric sand prairie among associates including little bluestem grass, the last of which has an overlapping blooming period.
If you have pure sand in your garden, or can make a sand bed, prickly
pear is an excellent plant for horticulture or xeriscaping. The site
must receive full sun, the more the better, because leaf rot seems to
be the main enemy of this succulent plant. It can be propagated from
cuttings, and spreads fairly quickly. The spines are needle sharp and
truly wicked, so be careful! This plant can quickly colonize a space if it is happy, and it produces edible, juicy red fruit after flowering. You might even say that it also grows its own toothpicks -- OUCH!
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