Echinocereus enneacanthus is a species of flowering plant first described by George Engelmann.
Echinocereus enneacanthus forms low cushions with 30 to 200 shoots. The cloudy to light green, cylindrical shoots, which are prostrate except for the tips, are up to meters long and have a diameter of . There are seven to ten ribs that are not clearly tuberculated. The one to four straight or curved, round to flattened, angular or furrowed central spines are yellowish to brownish or bluish. They are up to long. The six to 13 straight, whitish to brownish marginal spines are up to long.
The funnel-shaped flowers are magenta colored and have a darker throat. They appear below the shoot tips, are up to long and reach a diameter of . The spherical to egg-shaped fruits contain pink flesh and taste like strawberries.
This species is divided into the following subspecies:
Echinocereus enneacanthus is distributed in the United States in the state of Texas and New Mexico is also found in northeast Mexico in the states of Sonora, Chihuahua, Durango, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, San Luis PotosÃÂ, Coahuila and Zacatecas at elevations of 0 to 1800 meters. Plants are found growing in limestone soil in grasslands along with Echinocereus stramineus, Echinocereus chisoensis, Echinocereus dasyacanthus, Mammillaria lasiacantha, Lophophora diffusa, and Neolloydia conoidea.
The first description by George Engelmann was published in 1848. The specific epithet enneacanthus means 'nine-spined'. Common names include âÂÂAlicoche,â âÂÂBanana Cactus,â âÂÂCob Cactus,â âÂÂGreen Strawberry Hedgehog,â âÂÂPitaya,â âÂÂProstrate Hedgehog Cactus,â âÂÂPurple Pitaya,â âÂÂStrawberry Cactus,â and âÂÂStrawberry Hedgehog Cactus.â A nomenclature synonym is Cereus enneacanthus (Engelm.) Engelm. (1849).