Euphorbia characias
Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- you-FOR-bee-uh kuh-RAY-see-us
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
-
Mediterranean spurge is an easy, low maintenance, perennial that is perfect for a ground cover or specimen plant. This compact, upright, evergreen is native to southern Europe, Turkey, and Albania. Euphorbia is named for the 1st-century Greek physician who used the sap for medicinal purposes.
Grown in sunny dry locations with good drainage, it is well suited for xeriscaping, and places where maintenance is difficult, such as banks, and poor soil. It is tolerant of many conditions and is not picky about soil PH; however, wet soil in the winter can cause problems. It can easily be used to fill a small space in the garden or as a specimen plant. This spurge is grown for its easy care and beautiful foliage, with many cultivars available with colors from silver-grey, blue-green, and green-yellow. Highlighting the foliage in spring is a cluster of bottlebrush petal-less flowers called cyathia. The most well-known plant of the spurge family is the poinsettia with its beautiful red cyathia.
Mediterranean spurge goes well in the garden with other early bloomers such as tulips, daffodils, candytuft, columbine, and bluebells. Keep the plant soil moist until it becomes established, then water when soil is dry several inches below the surface. Pull up or prune back if it becomes overgrown for the area. Propagate by dividing and replanting in moist soil. It can also be propagated by stem cuttings. Let cut stems dry for a few days to allow the sap to form a callus on the cut end before planting in peat to prevent rot. When cut, the sap can cause skin and eye irritation so wear gloves..
Diseases, Insect Pests, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems
VIDEO Created by Elisabeth Meyer for "Houseplants, Succulents, and Cacti", a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- 'Black Pearl'
- 'Lambrook Gold'
- 'Portuguese Velvet'
- 'Silver Swan'
- 'Tasmanian Tiger'
Variagated foliage and pale yellow and cream bracts with green center blotches. - 'Thelma's Giant'
- 'Whistleberry Garnet'
Shorter with more vivid color - 'Black Pearl'
- 'Black Pearl', 'Lambrook Gold', 'Portuguese Velvet', 'Silver Swan', subsp. wulfenii, 'Tasmanian Tiger', 'Thelma's Giant', 'Whistleberry Garnet'
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- 'Black Pearl'
- 'Lambrook Gold'
- 'Portuguese Velvet'
- 'Silver Swan'
- 'Tasmanian Tiger'
Variagated foliage and pale yellow and cream bracts with green center blotches. - 'Thelma's Giant'
- 'Whistleberry Garnet'
Shorter with more vivid color - 'Black Pearl'
- 'Black Pearl', 'Lambrook Gold', 'Portuguese Velvet', 'Silver Swan', subsp. wulfenii, 'Tasmanian Tiger', 'Thelma's Giant', 'Whistleberry Garnet'
- Tags:
-
-
Attributes:
- Genus:
- Euphorbia
- Species:
- characias
- Family:
- Euphorbiaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- The white milky sap has been used to treat skin cancers, tumors, and warts.
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Seed
- Stem Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Mediterranean, Southern Europe, the Balkans, Turkey, Albania
- Distribution:
- Argentina, New Zealand, United States, United Kingdom
- Fire Risk Rating:
- low flammability
- Wildlife Value:
- Nectar plant to pollinators
- Dimensions:
- Height: 2 ft. 0 in. - 3 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 2 ft. 0 in. - 3 ft. 0 in.
-
-
Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Herbaceous Perennial
- Perennial
- Shrub
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Creeping
- Dense
- Erect
- Horizontal
- Mounding
- Oval
- Growth Rate:
- Medium
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Fine
-
-
Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Available Space To Plant:
- 12 inches-3 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
-
-
Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Green
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Fruit Description:
- The dry fruit of spurge is insignificant. Each capsule splits open at maturity to release three seeds.
-
-
Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Shape:
- Cup
- Flower Petals:
- Bracts
- Flower Description:
- A bottlebrush-like inflorescence tops the plant in spring. The inflorescence does not have individual flower petals but has a cluster of petal-like whirls of bracts called a cyathium, the same as the well-known poinsettia’s red flowers are also bracts. The bracts sit on terminal cylindrical-shaped heads and have black or dark brown nectar glands. Spurge has both male and female flowers and blooms in their second year.
-
-
Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Blue
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Smooth
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Other/more complex
- Leaf Shape:
- Linear
- Obovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Description:
- The leaves of spurge are blue-green in spring through summer, turning yellow-green in the fall. The dense, simple, scale-like leaves are arranged in a spiral along the stems. As the plant matures, the leaves become crowded near the top of the stem and are sparse near the base of the plant. Some people think the leaves smell like coffee.
-
-
Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Purple/Lavender
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Form:
- Straight
- Stem Leaf Scar Shape:
- C-shaped, Cresent shaped
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Spurge has a multi-stem trunk that is leafy throughout at first and becomes bare and semi-woody at the base, showing prominent leaf scars. The stem is purplish-green, smooth, erect, and covered with fine woolly hairs. The stem is biennial and carries the flower heads in their second year.
-
-
Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Coastal
- Container
- Naturalized Area
- Rock Wall
- Slope/Bank
- Small Space
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Mass Planting
- Small groups
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Hummingbirds
- Pollinators
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Drought
- Dry Soil
- Insect Pests
- Pollution
- Rabbits
- Salt
- Squirrels
- Urban Conditions
- Problems:
- Contact Dermatitis
- Problem for Cats
- Problem for Children
- Problem for Dogs
-
-
Poisonous to Humans:
- Poison Severity:
- Low
- Poison Symptoms:
- The milky white latex sap found in all plant parts can cause mild to severe contact dermatitis. If contact with the eyes occurs the sap can cause temporary to permanent damage to the cornea. If eaten, blistering can occur on lips and oral mucosa. Avoid ingesting plant parts and keep plants away from pets and children.
- Poison Toxic Principle:
- Saponins, Diterpene esters in milky latex
- Causes Contact Dermatitis:
- Yes
- Poison Part:
- Sap/Juice
