Prickly Pear Opuntia

1. Place the Prickly pear cutting on a flat surface in filtered sunlight. Choose a dry room that has constant temperatures of 60 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.

Leave the cutting for seven to 10 days to form callus tissue over the cut edge.

2. Mix one part perlite with one part compost to create a well-draining growing medium to plant the cactus in.

Fill a container with the mixture, leaving the top 1 to 2 inches empty. Use a container with drainage holes in its bottom.

3. Set the cactus cutting with the callused edge resting on the soil in the center of the pot.

Push one-third to one-half of the cutting into the soil mixture.

Tamp the soil down around the base of the cactus until the cutting is able to stand upright on its own.

4. Water the planted cutting using a watering can until the soil is evenly moist.

Place the pot in a warm room 60 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer in filtered sunlight.

Water the cactus when the top inch of soil begins to dry out.

5. Decrease supplemental watering to 1/4 inch of water applied every seven days once the cactus becomes established and begins to produce new growth.

Follow this water regimen during the months when night time temperatures remain above 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Give the cactus 1/4 inch of water every 14 days when night time temperatures drop below 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Move the cactus to full sunlight indoors once it begins producing new growth to begin acclimating it to brighter light.

Move the cactus to full sunlight outdoors after two weeks if you eventually plan to plant the cactus outdoors in the ground.

7. Grow the cactus in the container for at least one year.

Transplant the cactus plant in the spring once soil temperatures reach 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Plant the cactus in an area that receives full sunlight and contains well-draining soil.

Dig a hole equal in depth and twice as wide as the plant's root ball.

Place the root ball in the center of the hole. Backfill the hole with soil and tamp it down firmly.

Water the cactus immediately after planting.

8. Water the planted cactus once per week when night time temperatures are above 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Water the cactus every 14 days when night time temperatures drop below 60 degrees Fahrenheit.