The Jerusalem Botanical Gardens

Common name: Madagascar Ocotillo, אלואודיה תמירה, אלאודיה קיפחת

Family: Didiereaceae (Didiera)

Distribution: South Madagascar

Habitat: Dry forest and thickets at altitudes of 100-450 (800) m.

IUCN Red list: Near threatened

Life form: Succulent tree/shrub

Uses: Used as an ornamental plant, and for grafting several other species in its family.

Etymology: The plant is named after Charles A. Alluaud - a French entomologist and plant collector, who worked in Madagascar in the late 19th-early 20th century.

In memory: of Nizza Yaffe-Ovadia, a teacher of nature and life.

Description: A woody plant with fleshy leaves, and long columnar narrow branches. Up to 15 m tall. The stems are barely branching. They are densely covered with spines and small succulent leaves. The stems are gray, lignifies as the plant ages and will reach a diameter of 15 cm at the base. the leaves are small, 1-5 cm. they are oval or rounded. The leaves sprout in the rainy season, and will fall with the heat. The flowers are yellow, tiny, on a much branched infllorescence at the top of the branches. Specimens taller than 3 meters are dioecious.