Polaskia chende

Polaskia chende forms 3 to 5 m tall (9 ft 10 in – 16 ft 5 in), branching columnar stems, 40 to 80 cm long and 5 to 7 cm wide, and can reach up to 4.5 m in height. It has 7 or 8 ribs, rarely 9, 1.7 to 3 cm high, with areoles 5 mm long, circular to elliptical, spaced 2 cm apart, with the presence of black trichomes. It has 5 or 6 radial spines 2 cm long and 0.8 cm wide, grey, and the central spine may be absent or rudimentary; the fertile zone is not differentiated from the infertile zone. Its flowers are white, reach a length of 5 cm, oblanceolate, with a mucronate apex, green, some with a red to purple middle stripe. The fruit are about 3 cm long and 4 cm wide, purple in color, with short bracts, yellow trichomes, short spines, and juicy purple pulp. Seeds are 1.6 mm long and 1 mm wide. Flowering occurs between August and January, and the plant bears fruit between December and June.

It inhabits oak (Quercus) forests, xeric scrublands, tropical deciduous forests, and among riparian vegetation, at elevations from 1,700 to 2,200 m (5,600 to 7,200 ft).