This article was prepared with the support of UFL flower delivery. African milk bush (Synadenium grantii), which botanists now place in the genus Euphorbia, is a striking and undemanding houseplant, sometimes called the "love tree". It grows quickly, looks great indoors and forgives many beginner mistakes.
Synadenium comes from dry regions of East Africa (Tanzania, Mozambique, Malawi). In the wild it's a shrub or small tree up to 3 m tall; indoors, 60–150 cm. It has fleshy stems and large, oval, glossy leaves. The popular form 'Rubra' has wine-purple leaves that colour up even more in the sun.
Indoors it rarely flowers — small red blooms in winter, mostly on mature plants. It's grown mainly for its foliage.
| Factor | What it needs |
|---|---|
| Light | Bright — a south, east or west window. Morning and evening sun is good; shade from midday summer sun. In shade the stems stretch and red leaves turn green. |
| Temperature | 22–26 °C in summer, 12–15 °C in winter, never below 10 °C or it drops its leaves. |
| Watering | When the top two-thirds of the compost is dry, with tepid, settled water. Empty the saucer. Sparingly in winter. |
| Humidity | Copes well with dry indoor air. Rinse dust off the leaves with a warm shower, covering the compost. |
| Compost | Cactus and succulent mix with coarse sand, perlite and charcoal; drainage is essential. |
| Feeding | Monthly from spring to autumn with a succulent fertiliser. |
| Repotting | Young plants yearly in spring, mature ones every 2–3 years into a heavy, stable pot. |
Synadenium grows fast — up to 25 cm a year — so without pruning it becomes a long bare stick. In spring, cut back the tips and overly long stems to encourage branching and a bushy shape. Blot the cut straight away and dust it with charcoal to stop the milky sap.
| Problem | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
| Leaf drop | Cold below 10 °C, draughts, over- or underwatering. Adjust watering and move it somewhere warm. |
| Leggy stems | Too little light — move it closer to the window and prune. |
| Leaves losing red colour | Not enough sun. |
| Stem base rotting | Waterlogging. Root a healthy tip and replace the compost. |
| Pests | Mealybugs, scale and spider mites — treat with an insecticide. |
Because of the reddish, heart-like leaves of the red form.
Rarely: mature plants sometimes produce small red flowers in winter.
You can, but it's more reliable to dry the cutting and plant it straight into a light mix — there's less risk of rot.
Find more easy-care plants in UFL's houseplants section, and read about houseplants that can cause allergies and irritation in this article.
Author: Maria Svitlovir
Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.
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