Opuntia robusta

Nopal tapon

Family: Cactaceae · Type: shrub · Not Native

Nopal tapon is a naturalized shrub found in southern California coastal areas in disturbed sites and abandoned gardens at elevations of 5 to 600 meters. Flowering in April, this plant produces yellow flowers with white filaments and a white style in large blossoms up to 5 centimeters wide. Growing as a mound-shaped shrub less than 2 meters tall, it develops massive silvery-blue segments 30 to 44 centimeters long with spreading branches. Its areoles feature 1 to 2 chalky white spines up to 2.5 centimeters long with yellow cores, giving the plant a distinctive architectural appearance. The fruit is a juicy, deep purple-maroon structure approximately 7 to 8 centimeters long with 20 to 30 areoles.

Habitat: Uncommon in California. Disturbed sites, abandoned gardens

Bloom period: Apr

Elevation: 5-600 m

Bioregions: SCo

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.