Opuntia stricta Opuntia stricta Opuntia stricta is a large sized species of cactus that is endemic in the subtropical and tropical coastal areas of the Americas and the Caribbean. Common names include erect prickly pear and nopal estricto (Spanish). It is an erect or sprawling shrub up to in height, producing lemon yellow flowers in the spring and summer, followed by purplish-red fruits. It is quick to colonize hot, open environments with sandy soils. "Opuntia stricta" occurs naturally in coastal beach scrub and sandy coastal environments in South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and along the Gulf Coast in Texas, Mississippi, and Alabama in
Opuntia arenaria strongly deflexed and much shorter. Overall, plants (clumps) of cladodes may be 20–30 cm across and about 4–8 cm tall. Fruits are small, about 2.5 cm. Opuntia arenaria Opuntia arenaria was considered a variety of "O. polyacantha" by many botanists, and is still treated that way in the Flora of North America. However, "O. arenaria" is diploid and "O. polyacantha" is tetraploid. It was described by Engelmann in 1856. "Opuntia arenaria" can grow in soil that is essentially pure sand. It has rhizomes up to 1.5 m long that give rise to above ground shoots with small cladodes that are