Escontria chiotilla

Escontria chiotilla is a cactus from central and southwest Mexico. It is part of the cactus family, Cactaceae. In Spanish, its names include chiotilla and jiotilla. It grows in Guerrero, Michoacán, Oaxaca, and Puebla. It lives in dry scrub and tropical forests that shed their leaves. Known sites lie at 2,625–3,937 feet [800–1,200 metres] above sea level. Kew places it in deserts and dry shrublands.

This spiny plant stores water and forms a small tree. It has many branches and a short trunk. Its round stems are bright green. They measure about 0.26–0.39 feet [0.08–0.12 metres] across. The plant grows about 13–23 feet [4–7 metres] tall. Useful Tropical Plants also gives a height of 18 feet [5.5 metres]. These sizes do not define a clear range for garden plants. That source says it keeps its leaves year-round. Kew calls it a succulent shrub, a shrub that stores water.

The round fruit turns purple-brown, with sweet flesh inside. Each fruit measures about 0.16 feet [0.05 metres] across. People eat it fresh or dry it to store. They also make jam, ice cream, and drinks from it. One account says it tastes like gooseberries. People let the fruit ferment to make a drink with alcohol. They also eat the seeds once they dry and grind them. These uses go beyond fresh fruit picked from the plant.

People gather this cactus for food from wild stands. Some tend those stands to get more fruit. People also grow it and tend some plants in part. They have taken some steps to make it a crop. Local markets sell the fruit. People in central Mexico make broad use of it. Its role as food links wild harvests with local ways of growing. The dry stems serve as fuel once their useful life ends. The supplied account lists no known uses as medicine or known hazards. This does not show that the plant is safe for pets.

Useful Tropical Plants says the plant is still common across its range. It cites a 2017 IUCN review that ranks it as Least Concern. That account names no major threats to the plant. The supplied text gives no frost limit for this species. Nor does it say when this species blooms. It names no pests or diseases. Its growing notes cover cacti as a group, not this species alone.