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Akoko

Euphorbia herbstii

Also called Herbst's Sandmat

Akoko is a rare, endangered Hawaiian tree in the spurge family, endemic to Oʻahu and now found in only a few wild populations. Grown outside its native range it is mainly a conservation curiosity, and it should be treated like other euphorbs with milky sap.

Family
Euphorbiaceae (Spurge family)
Grows as
Tree
Light
Part shade, Bright indirect
Water
Water when the top few centimetres of soil are dry, and avoid waterlogging.
Soil
Well-drained potting mix with added perlite or coarse sand.
Temperature
18–28 °C; protect below 10 °C
How easy
Hard
Safety
Toxic: The milky sap is irritating to skin and eyes and is harmful if swallowed, as with other euphorbs.
Native range
Hawaiian Is.
Climate
wet tropical

About

Euphorbia herbstii (syn. Chamaesyce herbstii) is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae known by the common name Herbst's sandmat. It is endemic to Oʻahu, Hawaii, where it is rapidly disappearing. Like other Hawaiian euphorbs, this plant is known locally as ʻakoko. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.

This plant is usually a tree which can grow up to 8 meters tall. The leaf blades are long and narrow, and the branches bleed a milky sap. The inflorescence is a cluster of cyathia.

Other Euphorbia plants

Marble Canyon spurge · Abd Al Kuri Euphorbia · Euphorbia abdita · Euphorbia abdulghafooriana · Abram's Spurge · Desert Candle · Euphorbia acalyphoides · Greek Spiny Spurge · Euphorbia actinoclada · Pointed Sandmat · Euphorbia adenopoda · Miniature Saguaro

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Euphorbia herbstii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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