Cactaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Cumulopuntia sphaerica

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Perennial

Growth—

Cumulopuntia sphaerica is a plant of low to high elevations, growing in somewhat dry areas with a dry season that can last 3 - 5 months and often with a mean annual rainfall of less than 350mm^[1]. In cultivation, Cactus plants generally will not succeed in moist climates. They usually require a sunny position in a well-drained, circumneutral soil and to be kept more or less dry in the dormant season^[2]. Cumulopuntia sphaerica is an invasive species with an increasing population^[1].

Propagation

Seed - Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Cumulopuntia+sphaerica>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

[1]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
[2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
[3]Ethnobotany of the Andes — Bussmann R.W. & Paniagua-Zambrana N.Y. (Editors) · Springer Nature; Switzerland · 2020 · https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28933-1 · ISBN 978-3-030-28932-4 ↩︎
[4]The Cactus Family — Anderson E.F. · Timber Press; Portland, Oregon · 2001 · ISBN 0-88192-498-9 ↩︎An excellent work, giving botanical descriptions of virtually all the cacti, together with their range (but not their habitats) and sometimes also a photo. it also contains a long chapter detailing the many uses of cacti and another on cultivation..