Euphorbia maleolens central stem crown

The central crown on the stem of Euphorbia maleolens is positioned very close to ground level. Only the angled-up, finger-like branches around it gain a little height above it. These branches do not always grow in a neat single ring, as can be seen in the photo.

The branches are covered in rhomboid tubercles. Each tubercle earlier formed the base of a rudimentary leaf that dropped off early. White spots at the tubercle tips show the lesions where the leaves had been attached. Tubercle dimensions are about 10 mm to 15 mm by 5 mm to 12 mm.

The central, underground tuber body may become up to about 20 cm long or deep and 8 cm in diameter (Germishuizen and Fabian, 1982; iNaturalist; JSTOR; http://www.llifle.com).