Light: Bright indirect light is a definite requirement for a Desert Rose.

Water: A Desert Rose is a succulent so the soil needs to dry out before you water. The leaves of a Desert Rose fall off when the plant is over watered. If the soil of a Desert Rose gets excessively dry, the plant becomes dormant until you give it some water.

Temperature: A Desert Rose requires very warm temperatures. Keep the room above 60 degrees and avoid placing a Desert Rose near air conditioners or cold drafts.

Fertilizer: Fertilize a Desert Rose with a plant food that is recommended for flowering plants. The food should be lower in nitrogen and higher in phosphorous (10/20/10). Feed a Desert Rose monthly when the days are warm and long, late spring through early fall.

Soil: The soil for a Desert Rose needs to be a loose fast draining mixture that won't become soggy and heavy. Try adding hard sand to your usual potting soil or buy a mixture made specifically for cacti and succulents.

Pests: The Desert Rose may attract aphids, mealy bugs, and spider mites. Spraying with the green solution should handle most infestations. Aphids are starting to develop a tolerance to non-chemical solutions so you might have to purchase a heavy-duty insecticide if the problem gets out of hand.

Diseases: Most diseases that affect the Desert Rose, such as fungus or stem rot, are the result of over watering. Always allow the soil to dry out before you water. It's important to keep water off of the leaves, flowers, and stems of a Desert Rose.

Propagation: Propagation from seeds is best but rarely possible when the Desert Rose is an indoor plant. Stem cuttings are also a good method of propagation, but the new plants often lack those fantastic trunks with the fat base.

1. All of the green leaves on my Desert Rose are dropping off.
Sounds like you are definitely over watering your Desert Rose. Remember, this is a succulent and needs very little water.

2. My desert rose doesn't have a really fat neat looking trunk like some others I've seen. Can I do anything about this?
When you repot your Desert Rose, lift the root ball higher in the new pot so that the top part of the roots is exposed. Feed the plant with a good fertilizer high in phosphorus. This should help the trunk of your Desert Rose become more bulbous.

3. The stems of my Desert Rose are all bare and leggy looking with little clumps of flowers at the tips. Can I prune it?
Cut back two or three of the stems on your Desert Rose, almost to the main trunk, and place the plant in bright light. The new growth should start within three or four weeks; then cut the next two stems back. Check our glossary under propagation to see how you can use these stem cuttings to start new plants.

4. I have lots of green leaves but very few flowers on my Desert Rose. How can I reverse this?
A Desert Rose requires a great deal of bright light to flower. This plant also needs to be fed with a fertilizer high in phosphorous, the middle number on the plant food package (10/20/10), in order to bloom. A Desert Rose will flower more in the spring and summer than in fall and winter.