Giant Milkweed

This plant is a soft-wooded, evergreen, perennial shrub. It has one or a few stems, few branches, and relatively few leaves, mostly concentrated near the growing tip. The bark is corky, furrowed, and light gray. A copious white sap flows whenever stems or leaves are cut. Giant milkweed has a very deep, stout taproot with few or no near-surface lateral roots. Giant milkweed roots were found to have few branches and reach depths of 1.7 to 3.0 m in Omani sandy desert soils. It has unusual 5 petal, fleshy flowers with puffy fruits that burst open to reveal the brown seeds. I think it is very attractive, especially when set against desert sands and nothing else growing. Love the slightly 'alien' look to the seed pods and the colours are lovely.