Species library › Opuntia › Opuntia chlorotica
Succulents Well documented

Opuntia chlorotica

The pancake prickly pear, an upright, trunk-forming Opuntia of the Mojave, Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts with round, bluish pads and dense yellow spines. It needs full sun, very sharp drainage and a dry winter, and tolerates moderate frost when dry.

Opuntia chlorotica
Photo: Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Grows on rocky slopes, canyon walls and desert washes in open desert scrub and grassland, fully exposed to sun.

Mostly about 600–1,800 m, median about 1,160 m; extreme records outside that are probably errors.

CaliforniaNevadaUtahArizonaNew MexicoMexico NorthwestMexico Northeast

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

Grow Opuntia chlorotica? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY-SA 3.0 licence, unmodified.