Pancake Prickly Pear seeds (Opuntia Chlorotica) -30+ seeds-

NEW 2022 BATCH!  Freshly gathered in august in the Mojave desert, these are perfectly ripe so they will grow great in any garden. These produce beautiful blooms and also Medicinal interest in this plant were reported. 

Scientific name: (Opuntia chlorotica)

Common name: Pancake prickly pear, dollarjoint prickly pear, 

Range: Southeast California, southeast Nevada, most of Arizona, southwest New Mexico, extreme southwest Utah

Form: Large, tall, branched clusters, with a thick central trunk

Habitat: Rocky slopes, scrubland, mountain foothills

Flowers: Yellow with red centers, blooming April to May

(Opuntia chlorotica), a widespread prickly pear found in five states, forms great clusters; old specimens reach heights of 8 feet or more and have hundreds of pads branching from a thick central trunk, (usually) covered in golden-yellow spines, between 1 and 2 inches long in clusters of up to 7, which continue to grow on old segments, so that the lower limbs of these large plants seem especially prickly. Spines may be largely or completely absent, however, but the large glochids are always present to greater or lesser extent, also colored gold. Pads are grey green or blue green in color, between 5 and 8 inches long, circular.

 There are flowers located on the pads of the cactus. They are yellow with red centers and three to four inches wide. Several flowers grow on the edges of each pad. The fruit that grows from the flower are red or purple and turn gray when they get old. The fruit is one and six tenths to two and four tenths in diameter. The seeds of the plant are tan or cream colored

There has been medical interest in the prickly pear plant. Some studies have shown that the pectin contained in the prickly pear pulp lowers levels of "bad" cholesterol while leaving "good" cholesterol levels unchanged. Another study found that the fibrous pectin in the fruit may lowers diabetics' need for insulin. Both fruits and pads of the prickly pear cactus are rich in slowly absorbed soluble fibers that help keep blood sugar stable.