Adenium / Desert Rose ................................................................. Adenium Obesum Family: Apocynaceae Other Common Names Desert Rose, Kemboja Cina, Fu Kwai Fah (Prosperity Plant) Region of Origin East Africa and Arabia

Description
A small treelet that can grow up to about 1 m in height. It has pale grey stems, with fleshy leaves and a bulbous base. It has sparse branches and is slow growing.

Leaves fall in wet weather or when the plant is blooming.

Propagation
Propagate from seeds or cuttings. Cuttings should be allowed to dry for a few days before placing into a simple sand-peat mix. Popular in tropical gardens, they prefer a position in full sun or part-shade and thrive best in climates with a well-marked dry season. As they are very prone to rotting, they require a gritty (add granular brick chips), well-drained soil.

Maintenance
Kept dwarfed and root-bound in a pot, they will often flower more profusely. Requires fair amount of sunlight and should be grown in full sun. Intolerant of damp conditions. Frequent applications of liquid manure increases flowering.
In Malaysia, plant is prone to attacks from bugs. Apply fungicide or insecticide.

Gardening Values
This potted plant is usually grown in terraces and balconies in Malaysia. It is also used for rock gardens. For aesthetics and beauty of form, it is best grown from seed and most plant enthusiasts plant it 'bonsai' style with part of the root system exposed to give it that "aged" look. The Chinese believe that this plant bring good luck, hence the name Prosperity Plant!

Medicinal Properties
In parts of the Arabian Peninsular, the flowers are used to make rose water. The water is then dabbed on the forehead to relieve headache or drunk to relieve stomachache.

According to the Nigerian Journal of Experimental and Applied Biology, the aqueous stem bark extract of the plant can be used to treat cattle ticks.

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