We are not expert gardeners at all. Casual might be a better description. We purchased a 6" cactus in a pot, appears to be Euphorbia acru...Read Moreensis. It outgrew the pot, and we replanted outside. We did nothing other than hope for the best. We are in SE Florida, and our sandy soil is referred to as Sugar Sand. To our surprise, it has grown to over 6' tall. I am contacting the group hoping to get advice on how to handle the following situation:
We have just had a Tropical Storm pass through our area, after which the cactus was left tilted at about a 45 degree angle. I have since propped it up, but don't know where to go from here. Is propping adequate? How long should I leave it propped? There doesn't seem to be any damage to the plant. No rips or tears. The roots were not exposed. Any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Long after the big freeze of 07 I am surprised at how well it did. About 12' tall and now multi branching it is a lush gloss green. Inte...Read Moreresting when younger but still about 4-5',it was frost damaged at 32. At the time it was under the roof line.Now,I have learned that is a very bad place to to keep tropicals in a freeze-roof's act like waterfalls of super cold air. It was moved away from the roof a couple or three years ago and has not had any cold damage since.
The only problem since then, is it developed a lean that became pronounced during heavy rains last year. For now it has been tied back.
2010: I see that mine is getting the twisting weeping arms like those famous plants at Lotusland. If you like that look-E.abyssinica is the one to get.
Spring Valley, CA (Zone 10a) | September 2005 | positive
This is a nice upright tree. It doesn't have the usual spine problems along the stem ridges (they are tiny) that one gets with other Eup...Read Morehorbias. Sometimes when the plant is heavily laden with fruit, it will bend the stem segments and eventually that segment will break off.
It has a very clean and neat appearance otherwise. Highly recommended, low-maintenance tree.
Castro Valley, CA (Zone 9a) | November 2004 | positive
Euphorbia abyssinica, Synonym: Euphorbia acrurensis, Euphorbia grandis. Needs protection from frost. Min avg temps 50F(10C), From Ethiopi...Read Morea, Can grow up to 15ft tall, branches with 8 angles (4 for E.acruensis), thorns in pairs. Moderate water when growing.
I have been growing this plant for about 7 years now in Seattle. Keep it out of direct summer sun as sunburn will oc...Read Morecor. They are fast growing. I started out with a clump of 4 plants under 2" tall and now after seperating they range from 4' to 6' tall. A wonderful house plant ( at least in the NW ) grows indoors year round with houselight and warmth. Dosent appear to like
Cactus Juice brand fertilizer. I usually get leaves around Easter and the trick is to keep them for the summer.
Dennis
This plant has been a struggle for me to identify clearly for many years as it has not been well described anywhere that I can fi...Read Morend, and photos of it conflict greatly in the literature and on the web. Additionally, the synonym E acurensis is also problematic as plants sold as this in nurseries (and this is a very common situation) do NOT match the 'current understanding' of what Aloe abyssinica looks like. I am still not 100% sure, but from photos displayed of E abyssinica plant in Euphorbia Journal, I am think I finally have the puzzle worked out... would appreciate any confirmation or arguments otherwise. Thank you.
Euphorbia abyssinica, as far as I understand it today (jan 2011) is a candellabra-like plant (single stem with many upright, relatively parallel branches) of dark green coloration and somewhat 'wavy' ridges of vertical 'fins', usually over 4 in number, and usually 6 or 7 (maybe more). This number of ridges distinguishes this plant from the more commonly seen candelbra-like Euphorbias commonly encountered in cultivation such as E ammak (4-5 fins.. usually 4), E ingens (4-5 fins, again, usually 4) and E 'acurensis-nursery trade) with 3-4 fins. All other Euphorbias of this general shape are either much smaller in diameter (such as E trigona, lactea, etc.), rarer, or have different spines. The wavy ridges distinguish E abyssinica from all other large Euphorbias except E ammak, which can also have wavy ridges. This is in contrast to species like E grandicornis which have massive spines and greatly exaggerated ridges (if you can even call them that). At this time, most of the photos on this page are NOT E abyssinica, but I am hoping with some discussion with the Davesgarden administration staff I can remedy that.
We are not expert gardeners at all. Casual might be a better description. We purchased a 6" cactus in a pot, appears to be Euphorbia acru...Read More
Long after the big freeze of 07 I am surprised at how well it did. About 12' tall and now multi branching it is a lush gloss green. Inte...Read More
This is a nice upright tree. It doesn't have the usual spine problems along the stem ridges (they are tiny) that one gets with other Eup...Read More
Euphorbia abyssinica, Synonym: Euphorbia acrurensis, Euphorbia grandis. Needs protection from frost. Min avg temps 50F(10C), From Ethiopi...Read More
Hello
I have been growing this plant for about 7 years now in Seattle. Keep it out of direct summer sun as sunburn will oc...Read More
This plant has been a struggle for me to identify clearly for many years as it has not been well described anywhere that I can fi...Read More
Like all Euphorbia HANDLE WITH CARE, the latex/sap is dangerous and can cause skin rash, itching and general discomfort.