Coast Prickly Pear is a medium, evergreen cactus that grows slow to moderate. The leaves are medium green and are heavy, succulent like with sharp thorns. The plant grows erect, then is weighed down by its own heaviness. Those heavy stems hit the ground and then shoot up new pads. The flower is a beautiful golden yellow and is loved by bees. The fruit is a deep pink, maroon and is loved by people, birds and rodents.

In the garden, this plant is used in a rock garden, near a fence or somewhere you want to deter people or animal movement. This plant is quite hard to maintain, you’ll need a shovel, some tongs and heavy gloves to dispose of the pads. The fruit is edible and tasty. This is not the same plant that you see grown by Mexicans. That one is much taller, has less thorns and is not native.