Lactea
I see below that I’ve chosen a Euphorbia lactea crest as a Top Ten, and then here we have a question about one.
I’ve attached a photo of my “frilled fan” Euphorbia lactea which I purchased at SummerWinds nursery here in San Jose. I purchased a graft exactly as shown. Unfortunately, left out in NorCal December frost/rain. What was bright pink in summer is now olive green and I see white spots (on the plant…;-) I assume that’s latex. Will it recover now that I’ve brought inside?
When I first discovered it after the frost I saw how much olive green there was and thought it would get mushy (like ice wilted lettuce…). But, now that we’ve had some sun for a few days, it seems to me it’s not getting mushy and it’s getting pinker…;-)
I also noticed the white splotches (sorry again about cell phone resolution) and thought this was mold. But I read about the latex and that it’s poisonous so I haven’t touched the white spots, but so far they haven’t grown. Mold or latex secretion maybe caused by frost damage?
So, any suggestions on Euphorbia care? I’ve got it out in the sun now, but have had it inside near a window and haven’t watered it since the rains/frost earlier this month.
JT
JT,
I’m sorry to say that your crest is probably dead. They cannot handle frost. It should not have changed color at all, besides maybe a bit more pink in sun.
If you want a definitive diagnosis, we’d need to have you bring the plant to the nursery for us to take a look, but I’m pretty sure it’s not going to survive.
Peter
