Tall, blue-green columnar cactus closely related to San Pedro and often substantially more potent — one of the major mescaline-bearing cacti of the central Andes.
ECOLOGY & HABITAT
Native to the western slopes of the Peruvian Andes between roughly 2000 and 3000 m elevation.
Distribution
Peru
INDIGENOUS NAMES
The names this organism has been given by the cultures that have lived alongside it. Each carries an entire relationship — what is sacred is never simply translated.
- HuachumaQuechua · Andean curanderos
TRADITIONAL USE
- Used in traditional Andean curandero practice alongside San Pedro
CULTURAL CONTEXT
Often sold under the synonym Trichocereus peruvianus. Cultivated worldwide as an ornamental, with notable variation in mescaline content between clones.
REFERENCES
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- Trout 2014
- Ogunbodede et al. 2010
