marble column

A tender, slow-growing architectural, succulent shrub producing very upright stems and branches to 1.8m (6ft) high. These are green and three to four sided with short-lived, oval, mid-green leaves and persistent reddish-brown spines produced along the ridges of the stems. Along each side of the stems are variable, V-shaped bands in pale grey-green. Small, insignificant pale-green flowers can be produced in spring and summer at the tops of the stems, but these are unlikely to be produced on plants when grown in the home.