In the almost twenty years I’ve lived in Arizona, I never noticed this plant, until this year. It caught my eye because it doesn’t have “normal” plant leaves or flowers. In fact, to me, it looks more like something that should be growing under the sea – some species of sea coral, perhaps — surrounded not by desert sand but by schools of tropical fish.

Like most plants, the Firestick also has many other names. It is a member of the spurge family, and its official name is Euphorbia Tirucalli. It is also called the Indian Tree Spurge, the Naked Lady, the Pencil Cactus, and the Milk Bush. They aren’t native to the southwest deserts, but instead are immigrants from eastern and southern Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and India.

One thing I love about writing the Plant of the Month is that I am continually learning new things, and now I know that while all cacti are succulents, not all succulents are cacti. Succulents is a large family grouping of any plant that can store large amounts of liquid in its leaves, stems, or roots which it uses to stay alive during periods of drought. Cacti are specialized succulents that don’t usually have leaves, normally do have indentations or modified buds in their stems called areoles, and which are usually native only to the New World.

In the summer, the color fades to yellow or pale yellow. This makes sense for a desert dwelling plant – to conserve energy when water is scarce and to “show off its beauty” when water is plentiful.

Firesticks can grow as tall as twenty feet if they are supported, but typically are four to eight feet in most areas. They are easy to grow and to care for, and they will root from cuttings. They are especially effective visually when planted next to the green or gray green of native cactus.

Firesticks are even extremely salt tolerant. Maybe they really did evolve from some exotic plant under the sea billions of years ago. It’s a possibility.