Myrtillocactus geometrizans (mart. ex Pfeiff.) Console

Shrub or tree, up to 4-5 m high; trunk short, branches many, up curving, 60-100 mm in diam., blue-green; ribs 5 or 6, smooth, low, rounded; areoles 5-30 mm apart. Central spine 1, 10-70 mm long, dagger-like and sometimes 6 mm wide at base, almost black; radial spines 5-9, 2-10 mm long, red-brown to blackish at first, fading to grey. Flowers diurnal, 20 x 25-35 mm, creamy or greenish white, scales small; hypanthium very short; perianth rotate; pericarpel areoles slightly woolly. Stamens relatively few. Fruit globose, spineless, 10-20 mm in diam., fleshy, dark red or purple, very tasty. Seeds broadly ovoid, 1.6 x 1.3 mm, black-brown, dull, relief low-domed; hilum-micropylar region of large size, basal, impressed.

A tropical plant. It grows on calcareous soils. It needs bright sunshine. It needs well-drained soil. It can tolerate drought. It needs a temperature above 10°C. Melbourne Botanical Gardens. Adelaide Botanical Gardens. Queen Sirikit BG. It suits hardiness zones 11-12.

The fruit can be eaten fresh or dried. They are like blueberries fresh and like raisins when dried. The flowers are eaten raw in salads or cooked with eggs.

Plants can be grown from seeds. Plants are grown from cuttings. These should be taken when night temperatures are high or plants will not root. It can be grown as a hedge.