Euphorbia poliacantha | Fishbone euphorbia
€7,95
🌱 Morphology
It looks like a small candelabra from a volcanic landscape: numerous grey, angular stems rise from the base and open up to form a compact mass, while its pairs of spines trace an almost perfect succession along the ribs. It is an austere and powerful plant, with no leaves to distract the eye, in which its entire architecture is designed to survive in one of the driest landscapes in Africa.
It is a succulent, glabrous, and leafless shrub, densely branched from the base, which can reach approximately 1–1.5 m in height, although it is usually wider than it is tall. The stems are erect, fleshy, and have 4–7 ribs or angles, about 12–30 mm in diameter, slightly segmented and with the margins of the ribs traced by hardened structures. The spines appear in pairs, measure approximately 2–8 mm, and are usually separated from each other by a few millimeters; they can be divergent and slightly curved upwards. Small cyathia appear between the pairs of spines. Like all Euphorbia, it produces white latex when injured.
🌍 Distribution, habitat and family
It is native to northeastern Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula, with a presence in Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen. It lives mainly on rocky slopes and stony ground in arid regions, among open Acacia scrub and other xerophytic species, reaching the margins of Juniperus forests. It is found approximately between 800 and 2,250 m altitude. It belongs to the Euphorbiaceae family. Currently, Euphorbia poliacantha is considered a synonym of Euphorbia infausta.
❄️ Temperature — USDA Zone 9b–11b
It tolerates minimum temperatures of up to −4 ºC if it remains completely dry, is well acclimatized, and exposure to cold is brief. In cultivation, the combination of low temperatures and humidity should be especially avoided.
☀️ Lighting
During active growth, it needs intense lighting, with an approximate target of 18–25 mol/m²/day DLI PAR. It tolerates direct sun after progressive acclimatization. High lighting promotes compact growth and maintains the robust and densely branched structure of the stems.
💧 Growth cycle and watering
Winter rest.
During the active period, abundant watering is recommended, letting the substrate dry out completely before watering again. In winter, it must be kept practically dry, especially when temperatures are low. Rapid drainage is essential to avoid root problems.
🌸 Flowering
The small, yellowish-green cyathia appear between the pairs of spines, directly on the ribs of the stems. Several can appear together and go quite unnoticed against the plant's spectacular architecture. After flowering, trilobed capsules develop which may acquire dark purple shades as they mature.
🌿 Nutrition
During the active growth period, a specific fertilizer for succulents with high content of assimilable calcium is recommended, such as Desert CHOICE® Succulents, applied once a month when watering.
This is an inimitable xerophyte grown in Madrid in a technological square pot and with the substrate activated with mycorrhizal fungi.
📏 The sizes of our basic collection xerophytes are as follows:
S -> 9cm x 9cm
* As this is an online purchase, the appearance of the specimen sent may vary slightly from the product image. The measurements of the plant are specified in the photo description, but this may also vary slightly, because, it is a living being! Each of the Desert CITY plants has unique characteristics.
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