All plants /Cactus /Strawberry Pitaya
Strawberry Pitaya
Echinocereus enneacanthus, cactus family. Common in West Texas.
At a glance
- What
- Red fruit tasting of strawberry
- How
- Raw, once the spines are removed
- When
- Early summer
- Where
- West Texas desert and brushland
- Value
- Sugars, vitamin C
Caution: Singe or scrub off the spines before handling, exactly as with prickly pear. Never eat a wild plant on this guide's word alone. Confirm identity against several sources and learn the look-alikes first.
Identification
A clumping hedgehog cactus whose fruit genuinely tastes of strawberry, one of the best wild fruits of the desert.
Harvesting
De-spine the fruit with a flame or a stiff brush, then peel. Sweet enough to eat by the handful.
Photo: Theguyfrommanuel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Forages well with
Forage safely. Never eat a wild plant on this site's word alone. Confirm identity with several sources, learn the look-alikes, and when in doubt, leave it in the ground.