EUPHORBIA COPIAPINA

This member of the Euphorbiaceae family was given this name by Rodolfo Amando Philippi in 1857. It is found in the Atacama Desert of Chile, growing in grit or other well drained soil with little to some water (10 mm/year! but fog) and lots of sun. The caudex can grow to eight centimetres in diameter, the annual branches up to 25 centimetres. The flowers are from pale yellow to dark violet.

The genera name; Euphorbia dates back to the first century BC, where King Juba II of Mauritania used it in a reference to his doctor, Euphorbos, and that name was kept as a generic name by Carl von Linnaeus. The species name from Copiapó, a town in Chile. This is a winter grower, but is will probably use any chance given.