My Desert Cactus has dropped most of its leaves. It spent the summer in full sun on the deck and is now in a sunny southern window. I fed the DC fish emulsion during the summer. I've been watering the DC twice a month since November when I brought it indoors. Is this typical for this plant to drop its leaves and go dormant? What needs to be done to encourage bloom?
Desert cactus don't have leaves.
What you have is something else.
Find out what the plant really is and get back to us.
Sorry, I was not thinking. It is a Desert Rose or Impala lily (Adenium obesum). I'm not certain if this plant can be called a succulent or not. It has thorns and an interesting thick trunk, but I don't think it is a cactus. I bought it last April and I have not seen it bloom yet. All the lower leaves have dried up and fallen off, but there are still small green leaves at the branch tips.
Its called a caudiciform.
Adenium obesum is a member of the Periwinkle family (Apocynaceae), closely allied to the Oleander (Nerium oleander), and has no thorns nor spines on the stems.
The common name "Desert Rose" is a bit of a misnomer because there is absolutely no comparison with a rose. "Desert Rhododendron" would have been more appropriate because of the flower resemblance. One of its other common names is "Mock Azalea".
It normally goes dormant in winter and can be expected to bloom in the summer with the proper treatment.
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