Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Beaverita Prickly Pear
Beaverita Prickly Pear is a garden cross of two Arizona prickly pears, the beavertail and the Santa Rita. Its broad pads come in blue-green to purple-green and flush deeper purple in cool weather. In spring it opens hot pink flowers. It stays compact, about 2 and a half feet tall, and needs very little water in full sun.
Best for: focal spots in small desert beds, patio pots and planters, and mixed cactus and succulent plantings where you want purple pads and pink flowers.
It stays about 2 and a half feet tall with compact, branching growth. It makes a good focal point among other cacti and succulents in a small desert bed.
It does well in containers on a sunny patio. Use a sharp, fast-draining cactus mix and let it dry out between waterings.
Hot pink, ruffled flowers open in spring. The pads flush a deeper purple in cool, bright weather and turn greener when it warms up.
It is sensitive to soil that stays wet, most of all in cool weather. It carries fine glochids and some stiff spines, so handle it with gloves and keep it off paths.
- Plant to plant3-4 ft apart, center to center
Wait about a week after planting before the first water, then water every other week while nights stay above 60°F. Once rooted it needs very little water. Keep the soil dry through cool weather, when wet soil does the most harm.
It needs little or no fertilizer. If you feed it, use a light, diluted feeding in spring or early summer, never in fall or winter. Trim only to shape it, cutting whole pads at the joint with tongs and gloves.
Plant it with the side that faced the sun still facing south. A new plant can sunburn its first summer, so light shade cloth helps until fall.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
What is Beaverita prickly pear?
It is a garden cross between the beavertail prickly pear and the Santa Rita (purple) prickly pear, both Arizona natives. It carries fine glochids from beavertail and purple pad color from Santa Rita.
How big does it get?
It is a compact prickly pear, about 2 and a half feet tall, with pads about 3 to 4 inches long. That size fits small beds and patio pots.
Why are some pads green and some purple?
The pads are blue-green and flush purple in cool, bright weather or in dry spells, then turn greener in warm weather. That is normal and not a sign of a problem.
What color are the flowers?
It opens hot pink, ruffled flowers in spring.
How cold can it take?
It is a cross rated to about 20°F. Keep the soil dry through cold weather.
How often should I water it?
Water a new plant about every 2 weeks through its first summer. Once it is rooted it needs very little water. Soil that stays wet, most of all in cool weather, rots the roots.
Does it need full sun?
Yes. It grows best in full sun. A newly planted cactus can still sunburn in its first summer, so light shade cloth helps that first year.
Does it have spines?
Yes. It carries fine glochids, tiny barbed hairs, and a scatter of stiff spines. Handle it with thick gloves or tongs.
Can I grow it in a pot?
Yes. It does well in containers. Use a sharp, fast-draining cactus mix and let it dry between waterings.
What is the difference between Beaverita and beavertail prickly pear?
Beavertail has blue-gray pads and magenta spring flowers. Beaverita adds Santa Rita purple to the pads, with hot pink flowers and a compact, branching shape.
Beaverita Prickly Pear for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
Beaverita Prickly Pear is a compact cross between the beavertail and Santa Rita prickly pears. People plant it for its purple-flushed pads and hot pink flowers in a smaller plant. This page covers what to expect from its size, color and flowers, plus water, cold and handling.
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What is Beaverita prickly pear?
It is a compact garden cross of the beavertail and Santa Rita prickly pears. It has purple-flushed pads and hot pink spring flowers.
How big does Beaverita get?
It stays compact, about 2 and a half feet tall, with pads about 3 to 4 inches long. It fits small beds and patio pots.
Why is my Beaverita green instead of purple?
The pads flush purple in cool, bright weather and in dry spells, and turn greener in warm weather. Both leaf colors are normal.
How cold hardy is Beaverita prickly pear?
It is rated to about 20°F. Keep the soil dry in winter, since wet, cold soil is its main risk.
How often do you water Beaverita in Phoenix?
Water a new plant about every 2 weeks through its first summer. After that it needs very little water. Keep it dry in cool weather.
What is the difference between Beaverita and beavertail prickly pear?
Beavertail has blue-gray pads and magenta flowers. Beaverita adds purple color to the pads, stays compact and has hot pink flowers.
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