Nice pics everyone!
Connor, it looks like your esculenta is pregnant (last pic), if you should ever want to play some more. The trick of course is to harvest the fruit before it explodes (or bag it on the plant, if you prefer). I like to wait until the fruit is mostly brown, then snip it at the base and put it in a paper envelope, where it will pop at its own leisure, or can be induced to pop under warm, dry conditions.
There's a sort of existential chapter in Florent Grenier's 2019 book on Namaqualand succulents (which I highly recommend by the way) where he talks about sound, or more specifically the lack of sound in this arid region, and concludes by saying "...if one listens carefully, the popping of dry Euphorbia capsules dispersing seeds can be heard". I put an envelope full of esculenta fruit in the sun a few days ago and that popping sound repeated semi-randomly every few minutes was an excellent addition to my day.
The sound of a new generation coming into this world.
