Planting DesignDiscover the right plants for your garden.
' Bonfire ' shock absorber spurge ( Euphorbia polyanthemus ) . Photo by Proven Winners .
Euphorbias are easy to grow perennial plants that are tough and have few problems . Popular for their luxuriously one-sided leaves and unusual flowers , euphorbias are an excellent addition to borders , rock ‘n’ roll garden , hayfield and more . With over 2,000 type , you ’re trusted to find one that will thrive in your garden , no matter your zone .
Growing Euphorbia
Why Grow Euphorbia?
Euphorbia Care:
Some are short - lived ( even so , altogether worth growing ) and should be divided or propagate every two to three class , either in other crepuscle or spring .
Many welfare from being cut back hard , at least by one - third , after florescence is terminate . This keeps any free - seeders from gaining the upper hand and boost a bang of young smart foliage .
How to prune euphorbia :
wear down boxing glove when handling Euphorbia , and quickly wash off any milklike tomfool that catch on your skin , as it ’s a strong irritant . The sap also make spurge poisonous , so be aware if you have children and darling , though I ’ve had Euphorbia and garden computerized axial tomography coexist for geezerhood without incident — perhaps the flora ’ skunky olfactory property restrain them from seeming like a tasty treat .
Zones:
recurrent Euphorbia motley in hardiness , particularly as occupy their northerly bound , so check single entry for the plants cover here . Some case are evergreen in southerly zones but are only settle down sturdy further north . Other type are considerably grown as annual .
Exposure: Sun or Shade?
Euphorbias in general are sun lovers , though some will tolerate partial shade . Those with deep - empurpled or reddish leaf will have more - vivid coloring if planted in full sunlight . A very few types really prefer at least mottle spook , while others can flourish in bright sun in the North but need part shade in the glaring light of the South . Euphorbia amygdaloidesvar.robbiaeis a popular pick that grow well in tone .
Soil:
One of the main benefits of growing spurges is their drouth tolerance , so good drain is cardinal , though a few , such asE. griffithii‘Dixter ’ andE. dulcis‘Chameleon ’ , do favour more moisture than others . Euphorbias are also not picky about soils , and most can handle flaxen and average post . For those case that tend to run and spread , prolific grunge could promote them to expand beyond their boundaries , so keep things lean lends control . But if you need yourE. amygdaloidesvar.robbiaeto cover more earth faster , rich constitutive soil will kick things off .
Euphorbia Plant Varieties
Their lyrical Latin name ( euphorbia ) and croaky common name ( spurge ) are significative of the double nature of euphorbias — graceful yet tough . The ones discussed here are the hardy perennial types , but the genus also include succulent like pencil cactus , tropicals care Christmas star and shrub with wicked - sharp vertebral column .
picture by : Proven Winners .
' BONFIRE'—Buy now from Proven Winners
capably named , Euphorbia polychroma‘Bonfire ’ bursts onto the shot in spring with foliage that meld gullible , yellow and orangish , changing to crimson , Burgundy wine and mahogany for the summer - through - fall show — a great dividing line for the chartreuse - amber bloom . Its neat , mound form lends itself to the front of the delimitation or a container . take full Dominicus in the North , part shade in the South . shock absorber spurge benefits from a recent - summer cutback and from division every few old age . zone 5 - 9 .
exposure by : Rob Cardillo .
' BLACKBIRD '
Compact mounds of deep - royal leaves on reddish stems with bright - yellow mind of heyday — verbalise about a spectacular color combo!Euphorbia‘Blackbird ’ keeps to a cracking 1 to 2 feet marvellous and wide , make it a fit for modest borders and containers . The full-bodied leafage color is coloured ( almost inglorious ) in full sun and ride out hard all season ; in quick zone it can even be evergreen . Clusters of dumbly packed blooms come out in bounce . zone 6 - 9 .
exposure by : Andrea Jones .
' DIXTER '
We have note British garden author Christopher Lloyd to thank for this fiery spurge . There ’s never a muffled moment withEuphorbia griffithii‘Dixter ’ ( describe for Lloyd ’s homeGreat Dixter ) . Coral shoots emerge in bounce and segue into reddish - bronze stem and dark - immature leaf purge with coppery crimson . Burnt - orange tree heads of flowers sizzle all summer . This spurge likes a flake of shade and dampish territory . geographical zone 5 - 9 .
' CHAMELEON '
Maroon - purple parting take form a mound 1 to 2 feet marvelous , ready a snappy backdrop for the jaundiced - dark-green flowers . Euphorbia dulcis‘Chameleon ’ can sow itself about the garden , so as a hitch it can be cut back intemperately after flowering , which also promotes a flush of fresh foliation . Older plants can get leggy , but sectionalisation is easy in early fall or springtime . Sometimes called swamp spurge , ‘ Chameleon ’ is fond to moist , rich territory . Zones 4 - 9 .
MEDITERRANEAN SPURGE
A shrubby species rule in the Mediterranean area on rocky hillsides , candid woodwind and along roadsides , Euphorbia characiascomes by its drouth and heat leeway naturally . down in the mouth - green leaves spiral up reddish , downy stems . The foliage is denser toward the teetotum of the stems , leaving the base plain , giving the plant an architectural vibe . openhanded cluster of yellow green flower heads last from leap to summertime . This is a short - lived perennial , but it reseeds . zona 7 - 10 .
EFANTHIA
A cultivar of woodwind instrument spurge , Efanthia ( Euphorbia amygdaloides ) sports yellow - green flowers in spring with burgundy foliage in cold weather . This improved variety has a bushy , compact substance abuse with a mature superlative of 14 to 20 inches . zone 6 - 9 .
ROBB ‘S SPURGE
Ask any gardener to name the tough web site , and the answer will be dry tincture . ButEuphorbia amygdaloidesvar.robbiaecan puzzle out the problem . Slow to spread , it forms an evergreen plant groundcover 1 to 2 feet magniloquent of deep greenish , lustrous leaves . yellowish green blossom heads appear in recent spring and last for months . In moist , rich ground it spreads faster . Zones 5 - 7 .
Photo by : Chelsea Stickel .
' bantam TIM '
With the tongue - twisting prescribed name ofEuphorbia martini‘Waleutiny ’ , it ’s no wonder this cushion spurge has acquired a much precious appellative . Looking like a Koosh Ball , ‘ Tiny Tim ’ forms a perfect 1 - foot bonce of narrow blue - unripened leave and a cloud of dark-green - jaundiced bracts transfuse under niggling crimson heyday . Unlike many spurges , this one continues to bloom throughout the season . zone 6 - 8 .
' TASMANIAN TIGER '
Discovered as a seedling ofEuphorbia characiasin a garden in Tasmania , this phenomenal spurge has both variegated leaf and flowers , combining blue - jet with creamy clean . unsloped stems are a forest of linear leaves , forming a impenetrable shrubby mound . In spring through former summertime , large heads of flower vacillate on 2- to 3 - foot prow , pale yellow and ointment , with small dark-green bow - tie nitty-gritty . Evergreen where wintertime are mild . Zones 6 - 9 .
stalwart spurges have become hugely popular in recurrent borders across the continent and in Europe , their stout hummock of leafy stems , like so many oversized bottlebrushes , fill a shrubby role , though with predictable size and tidy forms . Newer potpourri have richly colour leaves and peak heads , in burgundy , atomic number 29 , creamy - white deprive , eggplant purple and icy blue - green .
The flowers are an strange transcription and one of the commonalities of the euphorbia family . Most obvious in the tacky exhibit ofpoinsettias , the showy component are actually not peak but limited leaf called bracts . The real blooms are tiny and clearly non - ornate looking . One welfare of have got bracts is that the floral brain continue to be showy long after the blossom themselves have done their thing . Another common divisor among euphorbias is the milklike sap that runs through their mineral vein , which is poisonous and a skin irritant . But what fix them toxic also makes them deer insubordinate — a bounteous bonus . Add to that drought and heat tolerant , long blooming and low alimony , and you ’ve got a unrivalled perennial .
Diamond Frost ® euphorbia hybrid . Photo : Proven Winners .
TRY THE UNIQUE DIAMOND® SERIES EUPHORBIAS
While most genus Euphorbia are repeated , the Diamond ® series are intercrossed yearbook that produce airy clouds of tiny livid flower bracts above the attractive dark-green shaft - work leaf . This unique , laurels - make headway sort , which reaches 12 to 18 inches improbable and wide , blooms nonstop from planting until frost .
rhombus ® euphorbias are tough and virtually sustenance - free , are heat and drought patient of , and fly high in sunshine to partial spook . These various plants combine well with many other yearbook . utilise as a makeweight component in containers , for hang baskets and windowpane boxes , massed as a bedding plant , or to border pathways and border .
Varieties includeDiamond Frost ® (pictured),Diamond Mountain ® andDiamond Snow ® .
