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Posted 3w ago by @pelssy

mushy milk tree

help!!! i’ve been cutting mushy arm part off this. where do i need to cut to try to save it? i moved it into better light too #AfricanMilkBush #SucculentLove #help
6ft to light, direct
4” pot with drainage
Last watered 2 years ago
You have to keep going until you hit normal, healthy tissue. Can you share a closer shot of the bottom of the main stem, right where it meets the soil? That brown area I'm seeing is concerning. If the rot goes all the way down to the base, you'll need to pull the whole plant out of the pot and inspect what's going on beneath the surface.
@pelssy That soil looks awfully wet? How often do you water this cactus? The other issue is that’s in a plastic container which doesn’t allow the moisture/water in the soil to dry out fast enough before you water again. African Milk Trees (Euphorbia trigona) are highly drought-tolerant. Because they store water in their fleshy stems, they can easily go several weeks without water. However, they thrive best when watered thoroughly and allowed to dry out completely between waterings. I agree with @stephongreg that the problem is possibly around the roots and that you will need to remove the cactus from the soil it’s currently in and repot it into a terracotta pot with well draining gritty cactus soil.
@Ms.Persnickety i’ll do that! i only water it once a month. i also ended up clipping all the arms off to propagate
@stephongreg the bottom has looked that way since i got it 😬 i’m going to repot it. i only water it once a month. i ended up clipping all the arms off to hopefully propagate it
@pelssy is the brown part hard? If so it might be corking which is normal and helps stabilize growth. How much direct light does it get? They need a lot of sun
@user141fc969 the brown spot is fine yes, you’re right. i moved it to a sunnier spot. the roots looked good too i gave it a repot hoping for the best!
Dear God, is he okay? I've never seen a white cactus.
So, I'm no expert on cacti, but I think the name Casper is suiting that cactus very well. He looks like a ghost. I read some of the comments, and I think like a regular cactus it should be watered every month plus a week or two months? Also, cutting off the mushy parts is best.
@dinosgoroarr yes he’s a white cactus! that was part of the draw for me. sadly he’s not made it. i’m hoping the propagation parts survive! 😬πŸ˜