I've been trying for 6 months to identify this plant. I have a young one that is about 2 feet tall. One of its interesting characteristics is the copious amounts of white milky fluid that pours forth of any wound even if one merely plucks off a leaf. Similar to jalapeno juice, it burns sensitive skin. It has stiff, thick leaves which are usually 6 inches long and 3 inches wide. I've added a photo of one I came upon in the SanDiego Zoo's arid region. This specimen was aprox. 4 1/2 feet tall. I would very much appreciate any help in naming it. Thanks!
The plant is a Synadenium, a common indoor plant (or outdoor, in the tropics and subtropics) sometimes called African milk bush. The species has a somewhat confused taxonomy -- most books list this red leafed cultivar as Synadenium grantii 'Rubra', but it is probably more correctly known as S. compactum 'Ruby'. Whichever, it is noted for its caustic, poisonous sap, and care should be taken when handling it. This link to Desert Tropicals, shows a closeup.
I was given a plant and I have no idea what it is, and I would like to know so I can purchse another one, can you help me? It is a house plant that likes lot's of light, and grows tword the light. It is low maintainance, and doesn't need to be watered very often. It's stems or vines, or whatever you want to call them are an ivory color and are very stringy and limp like. The "petals" are purple and there are three to a stem. Each individual petal looks like a moth sitting still, and they are purple. I have been told that this is a shamrock plant. Do you know what it is? I can be e-mailed at tera@bedardfirst.com Thank you for your time. Tera
