Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
season, but when present they are swollen with water and shining with wax. To replace the
leaves they often yield wonderful flowers and in so doing brighten up the landscape.
E. oncoclada
is sometimes called the sausage bush because of the regular constrictions
along its cylindrical green stems, giving a string-of-sausages appearance.
E. stenoclada
is
a large shrub with flattened spiny branches. By contrast there are dwarf prostrate species,
such as
E. decaryi
and
E. ambovombensis
, often with swollen underground roots
The
E. milii
complex (a group of closely related forms) is undoubtedly the most prom-
inent euphorbia in Madagascar, lining the streets of many towns. These are small shrubby
plants with spiny stems (hence the common name: crown of thorns) and a few terminal
leaves. The most dominant feature, however, is the bright red bracts surrounding the
flowers which produce a blaze of colour from the mass plantings. All euphorbias have
white milky sap which is toxic on skin contact, and can cause temporary blindness, so cau-
tion is urged in handling these plants.
Pachypodium
isagenusoffivespeciesfromsouthernAfricaandabout20fromMadagas-
car. The Malagasy pachypodiums have an unusual flower structure in that the stamens are
covered by a segmented cone which must be penetrated to achieve pollination. They vary
from tree-like species to caudiciforms (stem succulents) with white, red or yellow flowers.
They are mostly quite spiny when young but tend to lose their spines as they mature.
The bizarrely compressed
P. brevicaule
, which has been likened to a sack of potatoes,
has most of its large mass beneath the ground.
P. lamerei
- widespread in the southwest -
is the most common species in cultivation, often sold under the name Madagascar palm.
P.
rutenbergianum
iswidelydistributedfromthemid-westcoasttothenorthandisthelargest
of the pachypodiums, reaching up to 15m tall with a heavily branched crown.
Didiereaceae
of the arid southwest are the most intriguing plants in Madagascar, for they
are an entire family of bizarre plants found nowhere else on earth. They look similar to
cacti, but their tiny deciduous leaves - and the immense thorns that protect them - indicate
thattheyarenot(cactidon'thavethorns;theirspinesaremodifiedleaves).Ofthisfamily's
four genera,
Alluaudia
contains six species,
Alluaudiopsis
and
Didierea
each contain two
species and
Decaryia
is monotypic.
The octopus trees (
Didierea
spp) are the most famous members of this group. Species
vary greatly in form and flower colouration within the family.
Alluaudia ascendens
is
the largest, growing initially as a single stem, but then branching from the base forming
massiveV-shapedplants10-15mtallwithwhitetoreddishflowers.
Alluaudiacomosa
also
branches from the base, but forms a wide, flat-topped shrub 2-6m tall. The spines are up
to 2cm long and white flowers cover the ends of its shoots. The beautiful
Alluaudiopsis
marnieriana
grows to 4m and has the most colourful flowers of the whole family - up to
3cm across and bright crimson.
