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My Euphorbia Mayurnathanii is dying?

cactus_girlcactus_girl Posts: 6
in Problem solving
  My poor Euphorbia Mayurnathanii started to go yellow at the bottom about a month ago and this colour now seems to be creeping upwards!   This is a rare plant - extinct in the wild and soon to be in my house.   I have now tipped the pot out and replanted in fresh cactus and succulent compost in a porous pot. The old soil (that it came with) was only just damp. I did see a bit of white fibrous material on the main trunk below soil level and the roots were not as numerous as when first purchased.   I think it may be just too cold - it often goes down to 14C in the utility room at night. This happened to my Monstrose Apple cactus some years ago, which I have successfully taken cuttings from to create a new and very healthy plant (and which is not kept behind the curtains on cold nights any more).   So my plan of action is to keep the Euphorbia warmer and if the yellowing spreads further I will take one of the top newer growths off as a cutting, let it dry for a few days then pot up. The original plant appears to be grafted on to a base, so I'm not sure how a cutting will fare.   Such a shame as this plant is very rare and I was just lucky to see it at a garden centre about 5 years ago.  
Does anyone else have one of these? If so how warm do you keep it?

Posts

  • Paul B3Paul B3 Posts: 3,154
    Personally I wouldn't allow the temperature to drop below 20C knowing the species native habitat and climate .
    Your plant will eventually grow into a medium sized multi-branched shrub , and I think the yellowing of the lower stem is the initial and perfectly normal development of the woody trunk which is characteristic of many shrubby and arborescent Euphorbias .
    A personal and sad loss to me this year was the succumbing to the cold  of my very large Euphorbia horrida 'Striata' ; totally immovable in a massive pot it was compelled to overwinter in an unheated  g/house . At thirty plus years old it was a magnificent specimen ; hardy to around -5C, the prolonged frost of last month was just too much for it !
    Good luck with yours .
  • cactus_girlcactus_girl Posts: 6
    Thanks for the reply Paul.

    I have just seen some online photos of shrub sized ones. If you didn't zoom in you would not realise it was the same plant.

    Read on another website that watering from the top may cause mildew round the trunk,  which I did see when repotting it. So it's best to water from the bottom, which I will now do.

    So fingers crossed!
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