Walnut Creek’s Ruth Bancroft is a national authority on drought-resistant gardening. Twice a month she and her staff share their knowledge with readers. Cactuses come in many shapes, and they are ...

Hundreds of species of prickly pear cacti -- also called nopal or opuntia -- can be found in North America. Some Native Americans used the familiar cactus’ edible fruits and fleshy leaves, or pads, to ...

Q: I have a plant ID request for a very large pad Opuntia variety I found down in Tubac. The pads are very large by typical variety standards (12-14 inches), the fruit are near the size of tennis ...

Q: For several weeks we have had what I call “golden wasps” flying around our house. On occasion two or three have made it into the house. They haven’t been aggressive, just flying around. Recently, ...

Glass negatives are stored at the Smithsonian Institution Archives as of 1988. Opuntia robusta (Cactaceae). Collection: Griffiths 9170 DG, Panama, Chiriqui; pad. - Oct 7 1918. Record Last Modified 10 ...