African Milk Tree (Euphorbia Trigona) Identification and Care

The Euphorbia Trigona, also known as the African Milk Tree, is commonly mistaken as a cactus because of their prickly thorns, but it is actually a succulent that has the potential to grow upward to 9 feet tall, even indoors. The African Milk Tree is a member of the genus Euphorbia, and member of the family Euphorbaceae and is native to West Africa.

Thorns grow in sets of two along the ridges, and small, short-lived leaves emerge between them.

Because of the nature of their tree-like candelabra shape, they are also sometimes called Candelabra Euphorbia, Candelabra Cactus or Cathedral Cactus.

Light: They love bright light and can tolerate direct sunlight for half of the day. Placing it in a South or West facing window is preferable, although it can grow well in an East facing window too.

Water: Water only once the soil has completely dried out during the warmer seasons. In the Fall/Winter, you can allow longer periods of dryness between waterings since growing has slowed down. While this is a drought-tolerant succulent, it still requires a certain amount of moisture and should not be treated like a cactus. Be sure to saturate the soil completely during waterings and water until it soaks through to the bottom of the pot and into the drip tray. Allow the excess water to stay in the drip tray for 15 minutes, then dump the remaining water.

Soil: This can be potted directly into succulent/cactus mix, but I recommend adding extra peat moss and perlite to promote more aeration in the soil, especially for larger plants.

Fertilizer: Only fertilize during the growing season and do not fertilize during every watering. I typically fertilize twice a month in warmer seasons at most. I use a Marine Phytoplankton based fertilizer and prefer it over the regular 20-20-20 fertilizers found at most stores.

Container: I prefer to use clay / terracotta pots which will allow the soil to dry out quicker since the material is porous, but I know many people are hesitant to use them due to prevalent mold issues. It can still thrive in any other type of pot as long as there are drainage holes and your soil is well aerated. If you can find a pot that has more than one hole in the center of the pot, that is recommended, since plants with a dense root system can block water from passing through.

Repotting: Invest in heavy duty gloves! While the thorns on the African Milk Tree are not as sharp as cactus thorns, it can still puncture skin and lightweight gardening gloves (I know this from experience). For larger plants, ask for help to minimize the damage to the plant, and yourself.

This plant can still grow and thrive being root bound, so only repot one size up if you know for sure it needs the extra space. The milky sap in this plant is known to be toxic and irritating to the skin, so handle it carefully. If you get any on your skin, wash it with soap immediately. If you do not need to repot in the Spring, I recommend removing the top layer of soil and replacing it with fresh soil. The soil on the top layer does not necessarily need to be mixed with extra perlite and moss.

Propagation: This is one of my favorite plants to propagate and I've been able to gift many cuttings to friends and family from my mother plant. There are a few ways to do it, but this is the way I prefer and that has been most successful for me. The great thing about propagating this plant is that you don't need to worry about nodes, and can basically just cut it wherever you want, but I recommend having your cuttings be at least 4 inches tall if possible.

You'll need sharp shears, gloves, paper towel and a cup/container of really cold ice wate

• Have your ice water and paper towel ready. Using your shears, cut the plant and immediately place the end of the cutting into the cup of ice water. Then, use a paper towel to cover the top of where you cut to prevent dripping of sap onto the rest of the plant.

• Leave the cutting in water for about a minute to a minute and a half. The ice water will make it lightly callous over much quicker.

• Take it out of the ice water and lay it down on a piece of paper towel. Allow it to completely callous over for about a week or two in a cool, dry area.

• Once it has calloused, you can plant it directly into soil. While the cutting is still rootless, try and keep the soil moist (not wet). My cuttings have typically taken about a month and a half to grow a decent root system. Once the roots have established in the soil, you can lessen the moisture in the soil and water it as you would an adult plant.

Pests: This plant is less likely to have pests than your other houseplants, but on occasion, it does happen. If you notice brown spots, webbing, sticky residue, or anything that indicates something is living in your plant that should not be, you can gently hose it down (if able), or tediously take a cotton swab with denatured alcohol and wipe away what you can. As an added precaution, you can also use insecticide and follow the directions on the packaging.