Scientific: Euphorbia ingens (Synonyms: Euphorbia bilocularis, Euphorbia confertiflora, Euphorbia reinhardtii, Euphorbia similis, Euphorbia tozzii)
Common: candelabra tree, cactus euphorbia, tears of Africa, naboom
Family: Euphorbiaceae (poinsettia family)
Origin: Rocky outcroppings and sandy soils within semi-arid, seasonally-dry, semi-savanna to semi-tropcal habitats throughout Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Caprivi Strip, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Malawi, Mozambique, Northern Provinces, Rwanda, Somalia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zaïre, Zimbabwe, Africa.
Pronounciation: U-FOR-bee-a IN-gens
Hardiness zones
Sunset 13-24
USDA 9 (with protection)-11
Landscape Use: Strong accent to focal point, specimen, narrow planters against tall walls or building surfaces, naturally-lighted atriums, outdoor patio or indoor containers.
Form & Character: Strongly upright, stiff, bold, erect, dominant, rounded with age, semi-tropical.
Growth Habit: Evergreen, semi-woody (with age), succulent perennial, moderate to rapid growth to 10- to 20-feet tall (far taller in its native habitat), profusely branched.
Foliage/Texture: Ephemeral green leaves, variable size and shape, stems generally leafless, thickened, stout segmented, dark green to glaucous green, stems with 4 to 5 ribs, two stout spines of variable color are at each node along the stem ribs; coarse texture.
Flowers & Fruits: Very diminuative greenish-yellow cyathia flowers along ribs at tops of stems, attract bees and butterflies; fruits insignificant. Seasonal Color: Flowers during winter and early spring.
Temperature: Cold tolerant to 30oF. Like people, candelabra trees are intolerant of Phoenix summer western, afternoon sun and summer temperatures above 115oF.
Light: In Phoenix, partial shade or protection of intense western summer sun is best. No full shade.
Soil: Tolerant, but must be well drained.
Watering: Infrequently irrigate during summer months.
Pruning: None, except perhaps remove rogue or wayward stems.
Propagation: Easily grows adventitious roots from stem cuttings of any size. Allow stems to callous before rooting in substrate.
Disease and Pests: None, except root rot in chronically damp to wet, poorly drained soil.
Additional comments: Candelabra tree is a highly desirable, popular novelty plant that visually dominates whenever it is used in outdoor or indoor settings. In Phoenix, its use is constrained by the extreme urban Sonoran Desert summer climate to site locations that are protected from the summer western afternoon sun, thus it is seldom seen. In contrast, candelabra tree in coastal regions of southern California thrives in full sun.
There are several popular cultivated varieties including:
Toxicological and biomedical factoids: White milky latex from stems of candelabra tree is extremely toxic! It can cause blindness, severe skin irritation, and poisoning (when ingested) in humans and animals. In Africa stem latex is used to poison fish. Recent research has demonstrated that candelabra tree has anti-cancer properties.
