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Golden Goblet (Liam Thong) is a brand‑new Thai Crown of Thorns hybrid, but cheaper look‑alikes called “Liam Thong” are already popping up in US shops. Many of these listings only show one flower photo and don’t match the real plant’s traits. In my blog, I explain how to tell the authentic Golden Goblet by its thorn pattern, stem thickness, and leaf shape — and why correct provenance matters for collectors.

My initial encounter with Crown of Thorns (Euphorbia milii) occurred in 1995 during a vacation in the Philippines, when this plant was a burgeoning trend. At that time, I was residing in Rome in a tiny apartment, which made it challenging to cultivate any new plants, as my balcony was already filled with a collection of cacti and herbs. In 2010, my journey took an exciting turn when I relocated to Texas. The following year, I stumbled upon my first Crown of Thorns plant—a rare (back then), vintage salmon-colored cultivar—at a local flea market. This encounter ignited a profound passion...

Rooting Crown of Thorns can be done in many, varied ways. If you just started your collection and would like to propagate a favorite color to gift to your friends and relatives, this post is for you. This post will be a 2-part series. In this article I will talk about the traditional way of rooting Crowns and in the second part I will tackle the master growers’ method. In my years of growing these beauties, and after reading hundreds of internet webpages on how to root cuttings successfully, I have developed my personal method of rooting. I have two...

There were quite a few customers who suggested that I ship their plants with soil. And some also asked me why do I ship their orders bare root.  Here are the straightforward answers to all these questions. First off, the USDA/APHIS(United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

I have seen posts on social media of Crown of Thorns that are sick because they are over fed and most of the time, the owner does not even know it. Also, I have been asked too many times by my customers of what is wrong with their Crown of Thorns. On this post I will tackle Phosphorous toxicity and I will address the other nutrient toxicities in my next posts. Many gardeners seem to believe that fertilizers that contain high amount of phosphorous will make their plant bloom like crazy. Examples of high Phosphorous fertilizers are 10-30-20, 10-52-10, 12-55-6,...