Euphorbia Poissonii Variegated Origin and Habitat: Tropical West Africa from Guinea to North of Nigeria. Irregular distribution, locally common and gregarious.
Altitude range: 400-700 metres above sea level.
Habitat: it grows on rocks and stony soils in open Monotes woodland with grass, and on rocky hills in dry savanna. The plant is sometimes cultivated, and often found in fields and villages in Dahomey.
Euphorbia Poissonii Variegated Description: Euphorbia poissonii is an erect much-branched succulent shrub 1.2-2(-3) m high, with candelabriform branching with one to several columns and topped with large green leaves during the growing season, occasionally sub-spiny.
Stems: Branches cylindrical, stout, succulent, often indistinctly tessellate, (2-)3-3.5(-4) cm thick green to silvery-grey on old trees, smooth, glabrous, full of white latex.
Spines: Not spiny or sometimes with rudimentary, single spines, somewhat blackish, 3-8(-15) mm long, spirally-arranged, or with spines present only on young plants. So it would appear E. poissonii can be spineless or have one spine.
Leaves Alternate, sessile, deciduous, pale green and somewhat glaucous at base, spirally-arranged or in 8-10 ranks at the apex of the branches, 5-14 cm long and 2-7 cm across, glabrous, fleshy, spatulate or triangular, with a notched or truncate apex, sometimes torn into thin strips, and a tapered. Nerves Pinnate, only the midrib is clearly visible. For the most part of year leafless, only leafing for two or three months, during the rainy season.
Inflorescence: One or two flowers at the end of a shared short peduncle set on the upper edge of a leaf scar.
Flowers: Short peduncled yellow/green or greenish with red stamens, 10-12 mm in diameter, bud trigonous, ornamented with 5 red glands.
Blooming season: It flowers at the end of the dry season, before coming into leaf.
Fruit (capsules): Trilobed, more or less globose, grey to beige when ripe, glabrous, about 6 mm in diameter, at the end of a 6-12 mm long, bent pedicel.
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