dang fleabane...thanks. pilewort, eh? I wonder what I should do with it? I googled it and the flowers seem like they could be pretty. Or do you think it would it be a mistake to keep it?

Hi Nomen~ Thank you for your help! I actually hate Euphorbia's :-/ But hubby had to pick something out... and I asked him recently to go find his plant in the greenhouse and he had no clue.. He just wanted to shop. lol.. medusae sounds like something he would pick . lol The little thimble cactus, blank on the real name at the moment.. Arizona snow cap or something like that.. I had just tossed in there because it's pot got knocked over. lol.. It's a Hawothia I want to add to the pot. I'll try and do a little more google.. Not sure when I can get over to Arid lands..

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_mll4CaWZOKc/SZsmbTWQdRI/AAAAAAAAoKY/c1KTgZVr-1U/s720/IMG_8611.JPG ^-- What is that? It looks a bit like a anacampseros but I can't tell.

For someone who has a problem with misinformation, it is unfortunate that you are helping to spread more. First off, you are extremely lucky not to have had serious problems getting it in your eye. I assure you it is the "norm" for people to have severe irritation with exposure of Euphorbia latex to the eye. In fact, there are medically documented cases of E. tirucalli in particular causing permanent blindness. It's true that a person's response all depends on their individual sensitivity, but it should still be treated as dangerous until demonstrated otherwise. In addition to personal sensitivity, it also strongly depends on how the plant is grown. A plant given the proper amount of sun and nutrients (tons of the former, very little of the second) will be far, far more irritating than a plant grown indoors in poor conditions. A healthy plant produces more toxins to protect itself than a plant that is just struggling to survive. I would be willing to be that most people who have been exposed to E. tirucalli without any affect were exposed to latex from an overwatered, etiolated plant. Those same people exposed to the latex from a plant grown outdoors in full sun would likely have a painful reaction. Even the 'benefits' you are talking about demonstrate the caustic nature of the latex. Mole and wart treatments always just kill the top layer of skin, either chemically (salicylic acid for commercial products) or mechanically (by freezing for example). Even though your latex wasn't strong enough to cause irritation, it was still toxic enough to destroy the top layer of skin that formed the mole... Asprin is not an antihistamine. It is an analgesic and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. It does help ease the pain of latex irritation, but not through any treatment of an allergy. It simply reduces the inflammation that sensitizes nerves. A much better treatment for Euphorbia latex exposure is to apply a few drops of sap from Aeonium lindleyi to the afflicted area. This is a well know antidote, and any serious Euphorbia collector will always have some on hand for an emergency. One gentleman in the Long Beach Cactus Club may very well have saved a friend's eyesight with this. Portulacaria afra is also supposed to serve as an antidote, but not as effectively as A. lindleyi. Finally, adding a layer of perlite/gravel/pumice to the bottom of a pot actually increases the amount of water the soil above it holds, doing the complete opposite "improving drainage." The soggiest soil is always at the bottom of the pot, and the layer of gravel only serves to "raise" the bottom of the pot, bringing the soggy soil closer to the base of the plant. The gravel is too coarse to wick away the water in the soil column. I fully enjoy my E. tirucalli and would never consider getting rid of it. I'm certainly not afraid of it, but I do treat it with a reasonable amount of caution and respect, because in the end, it *is*...