Desert Rose

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Give it the sunniest south or west window you have, where 6 or more hours of direct sun reach the leaves. With less it won’t flower and may drop leaves, and a Chicago winter can’t give it enough, so it rests.

With less, it flowers little or not at all. A Chicago winter can’t give it enough, so expect it to rest then.

A summer outdoors in full sun is the best thing you can do for it (see Troubleshooting).

Through summer it takes a soak every 1-2 weeks, and every 3-6 weeks during its winter rest, with the mix drying out all the way between. Soggy soil rots the roots and the swollen trunk, so when in doubt, wait.

Water until it runs out the bottom, empty the saucer, and let the soil dry out between soaks, which takes 7-10 days in a sunny summer window. Soggy soil rots the roots and the swollen trunk, so when in doubt, wait.

Gone for a while? Two weeks is fine if it’s watered the day you leave, and in winter, while it rests, it can go longer.

A swollen trunk branches into a small, leafy crown, slowly reaching 3-5 feet in a pot over many years. Growers often lift it higher in its pot to show off more of that water-⁠storing base.

Growth is slow, and the caudex widens and swells as it ages. It needs no pruning; if you trim a branch to shape it, wear gloves.

Dangerous for a dog or cat that chews it, with an irregular heartbeat among the signs (ASPCA), so it suits a home without a chewer. For kids it’s moderately toxic; CHOP advises calling Poison Control if any is eaten.

It contains heart toxins; ASPCA lists irregular heartbeat and death among the signs

The whole plant carries cardiac glycosides. The ASPCA lists vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, depression, an irregular heartbeat, and death. If a pet has chewed any part of it, call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center right away.

Kids too: NC State Extension says all parts are poisonous if eaten, and the milky sap irritates skin. Wear gloves to prune or repot it, and keep it well out of reach of small children.

1. ASPCA: toxic for dogs.
2. Merck Veterinary Manual: toxic for dogs (rates the whole genus).
3. ASPCA: toxic for cats.
4. Merck Veterinary Manual: toxic for cats (rates the whole genus).
5. : toxic for kids.

Cats and dogs: A leading source reports deaths, and none calls them rare.

Kids: Heart toxins (cardiac glycosides, Merck); CHOP says any amount of a cardiac-glycoside plant needs a call to poison control.

Built for heat and dry air, it’s comfortable at 55-95°F with humidity as low as 10%, so there’s no misting to do. Cold is what’s hard on it: bring it in from a summer outdoors before nights reach 55°F.

Temperature

55-95°F

Humidity

10%+

Mealybugs look like tufts of white cotton, and scale like small brown bumps stuck to the stems and leaves. Aphids, small soft bugs on new growth, and spider mites turn up now and then.

• Mealybugs
• Scale
• Aphids
• Spider mites

A few. Scale is the one to watch for, then mealybugs and aphids, and rot if the soil stays wet.

Scale looks like small brown bumps stuck to the stems and leaves. Lift them off with a fingernail or a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol (gloves on), then check again next week. The same swab takes care of mealybugs, which look like tufts of white cotton, and aphids, small soft bugs on new growth.

Leaf spot, a fungus, leaves brown spots on the leaves now and then. Pick off the spotted ones and keep water off the leaves.

Rot shows as a trunk going soft or wrinkled at the base while the soil is wet. Let it dry right out and water less often from then on.

A few feeds in spring and summer are plenty, and in winter you cut back the water and let the leaves fall while it rests. Trim to shape with gloves on if you like, and repot every 2 years or so.

• Feed in spring3× a year
• Winter dormancy: cut water, accept leaf drop1× a year
• Prune with gloves (toxic latex)1× a year
• Repotevery 2 years

A cactus and succulent mix, in a pot with a drainage hole. Terracotta helps the soil dry out between soaks.

Repot only when the roots fill the pot, in spring or summer while it’s growing, and wear gloves.

Food is optional: a balanced houseplant fertilizer a few times in spring and summer is plenty, and none while it rests in winter.

Oval leaves about 3 inches long, with a satin sheen, crown a fat, swollen trunk, and the soil shows around its base. For a few summer weeks, pink, red or white trumpets may open.