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Scientific: Euphorbia lomelii (formerly Pedilanthus macrocarpus)
Common: Lady's slippers
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Origin: Mexico (Sonora, Baja California)

Pronounciation: Yew-FOR-bee-a low-MEL-ee-i

Hardiness zones
Sunset
12-24
USDA 9-11

Landscape Use: Textural and floral accent, specimen, sun and shade desert gardens

Form & Character: Stiffly upright, coarse and brittle, to sprawling especially in the shade.

Growth Habit: Evergreen, semi-succulent perennial, strongly upright up to 3- to 6-feet tall. Eventually stems cascade and sprawl with age creating 'quite a mess'.

Foliage/Texture: Generally leafless, elongated stems are green (photosynthetic); medium coarse texture.

Flowers & Fruits: Small, yellow to red terminal blooms, attract hummingbirds; fruits are oblong and reddish.

Seasonal Color: Flowers in summer and fruits during winter are relatively minor accents.

Temperature: Cold tolerant to 25oF, but will develop chilling injury in the form of reddened stems when night-time winter temperatures are consistently in the 30o to 40oF range.

Light: Versatile from full sun to shade, prefers partial shade in Phoenix.

Soil: Any soil type.

Watering: Some summer water is needed.

Pruning: Any amount of stems at any time can be removed depending on situation.

Propagation: Easy by stem cutting.

Disease and Pests: None

Additional comments: Lady's slippers is an interesting, semi-succulent accent shrub for small and narrow landscape borders. Overall, this is quite a nice accent shrub when young that features the landscape elements of line and coarse texture that contrasts well when planted alongside finer textured and more rounded shrubs. However, it can become 'quite a mess' as it gets older....all entangled up, scruffy, sprawling and rambling. Older specimens kinda make me say, "Meh!"

Bioindustrial factoid: Stems contain a white, milky latex that is 6% to 10% rubber.