The entry for this species in the Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants is surprisingly terse: “Insufficiently known only from the type description and probably not a species of Euphorbia.” I confess that we have never flowered the plant to prove that it is a euphorbia, but it certainly bleeds milky sap like one! We have grown the plant since its original introduction as ISI 916 in 1975. It is unusual for its flattened branches, similar to E. enterophora, but they appear to be glossy and glabrous, though, in fact, the stems are very minutely pubescent. Native to the more tropical south of Madagascar, we have rooted cuttings most successfully in a warm, humid greenhouse. However, the original specimen has survived normal succulent culture in our Desert Conservatory for decades. Rooted cuts of HBG 57774, originally collected by Pierre Fischer ca. 15 km W of Ampanihy, Madagascar. $10.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 91 (2), Summer 2019