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Opuntia engelmanii var engelmanii (125)
Name
Opuntia engelmanii var engelmanii
Origin
This cactus is found widely throughout the southwest, particularly in southern Arizona. It is one of the most common cactus species in Pima County, Arizona.
Nomenclature
The species was named after the famous botanist George Engelman (1809-1884), the German-American botanist whose collections reside in the Missouri Botanical Gardens, in St. Louis. The name Opuntia comes from the name of a Greek city. Synonyms include. Engelmann’s Prickly pear, and the Calico Cactus.
Discussion
Opuntia is a very large genus of cacti, varying in size from 2 inch miniatures to 100 feet high trees. They are native to virtually every county in the Western Hemisphere. Opuntias not only have normal spines, but they also have thin barbed spines barely visible, named glochids. The fruit of this genus is generally edible.
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