It's rather surprising to many (it was to me) that the prickly pear cactus is native to our region. (Eastern prickly pear, Opuntia humifusa, also called devil's-tongue in the native plant data base I have. Momentary panic over, that it wasn't actually a native: case in point for why most hardened scientific types prefer scientific rather than common names...) I suppose a sandy, and therefore relatively dry, soil is similar enough to that of a desert to get by on.
How marvelous that such a solidly-constructed and well-defended plant has such delicate flowers…
