Glad to see we're back up and running, too. Bonap is a fantastic resource.
Happy New Year!

Here's two Opuntia that will grow outdoors in Virginia. Opuntia stricta and O. humifusa.

How do I know?

Bonap!

http://bonap.net/Napa/TaxonMaps/Genus/State/Opuntia

I used this method. It worked for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGG2-YpGDWA

TEOTWAWKI...

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/TEOTWAWKI

Tongue in cheek humor.

Mother Earth is struggling under our management.

The only Cholla in Colorado near Buena Vista is C. imbricata...the tree Cholla.

Her description of no others around and no larger plant it could have come of all but eliminates the Tree Cholla.

Looks more like an Opuntia fragilis pad....not any type of Cholla cactus I'm familiar with. Here's one of my encounters with this species.

A few of my in ground cacti blooming.

Some good efforts by Jane Goodall here. https://www.independent.co.uk/topic/jane-goodall It would be nice if the power of social media took up the cause of saving us, by saving and cleaning up our oceans, wildlife, plant life = large rain forests, or even just slowed down over fishing the oceans. No...

forgot to post the Opuntia polyacantha ... Yellow when open and Peach when closing.

A Cactus Blooming Party is going on at my place! First was the above Pedio. simpsonii....followed by EVERYTHING!

I would agree cut back on the sun and a wee bit on the watering. My Sclerocactus seedlings went red quickly and with less light back to green just as quickly. Mine are now outside mostly indirect light/shade and are green.

Getting it in and out of the trunk looks dangerous! Kudos for saving this beauty and only getting a couple of spines on you It was sketchy for sure. I had those black shipping gloves on ....like that would prevent 3-4 inch spikes from stabbing me. :shock: The saving grace was the light weight...may...

Last night I got a pair of tongs and removed a cubic foot of old flower buds, leaf trash, sticks, dried weed vines and around 3 dead pads. It improved the appearance quite a bit as one could imagine. Like a fresh hair style. It's going to need a new large pot or being planted into the ground at some...

Just a couple of blocks from my office in a residential area I have been seeing daily a quite massive potted Opuntia polyacantha specimen. And every time I passed by I thought of stopping and offering to purchase a few pads from the owners. Well, that never happened...even over the course of 3-4 yea...

You could apply Sulphur or root hormone powder (what I use). Let the cut heal to calloused over before planting. Were it me, I would probably do it indoors and after the cut heals place it vertical in a pot with sand making contact with the callous for a month or so. Then check for roots. Wait again...