Hello! I would love help understanding how to keep this African milk tree happy and healthy.
We inherited it from a family member and for the first year we had it, it seemed pretty healthy. It was growing and upright but in the last few months it’s been leaning and starting to bend.
I feel like the pot is too small but repotting it terrifies me.
by wait-whosaidthat
5 Comments
I’ve got one of a similar height to yours. Your isn’t getting enough light. Mine is right up against the window.
Yours is leaning and bending because it’s searching for more light. You’ll need to move it closer to a window or buy a grow light for above it
It looks like it’s reaching for light. Can you tell us about its conditions?
not enough sunlight will cause all sorts of problems
As others already said, it’s severely etiolating (=thin growth) due to lack of light. Low light conditions is also a reason why it is not branching.
It has been in a low light conditions for so long that it has become too weak. If you move it closer to a window and the growth becomes stronger, the old thin growth can’t support the weight of the new heavier growth. It will result to leaning and collapsing trunks.
I wouldn’t even take cuttings from a plant this etiolated as I want cuttings to be from a strong plant.
It’s just that all our indoor planta are from the outdoors. Some are from a sunnier areas, some from rainforest. But they all need light and worst thing you can do to any plant is to place it far from window.
I can understand your hesitance in repotting it.. it is huge and any puncture or damage will relaese sap which can be dangerous. Please wait for a few more informative comments before making your decision. ✨