Euphorbia L.

	Euphorbia polychroma: stem

snow-on-the-mountain (Euphorbia marginata), dog eye (E. characias ssp wulfenii), yellow spurge

spurge, ghostweed (Euphorbia marginata), scarlet plume (E. fulgens)

Euphorbia characias L. ssp wulfenii (Hoppe & Koch) Rad.-Sm.

E. fulgens Karw. ex Klotzsch

E. marginata Pursh.

E. xmartinii Rouy

E. polychroma Kerner

Less commonly cultivated

E. dulcis L.

United States (Euphorbia marginata), Mexico (E. fulgens), France (E. xmartinii), Europe (E. dulcis), western Mediterranean (E. characias ssp. wulfenii).

Inflorescence a cyathium, in simple or compound umbels, or axillary cymes; cyathium small, usually less than 1 cm in length and diameter, flower-like, consisting of a calyx-like involucre, petal-like glands with or without appendages, many stamen-like male flowers and 1 pistil-like pendulous female flower; cyathium often subtended by 2 or more enlarged, sometimes colored bract-leaves.

Stem and inflorescence paired or whorled leaves (sometimes distinct from cyathium bract-leaves) of various sizes, shapes, and colors. Several cultivars are associated with each of the species below.

Euphorbia characias: Dense terminal cymes of cyathia bearing 4 purple glands, cupped in 2 green involucral bract-leaves; ssp wulfenii has yellow-green involucral bract-leaves and yellow-green glands.

E. fulgens: Axillary cymes of cyathia bearing 5 glands with red, orange, yellow, or white appendages.

E. marginata: 3-rayed umbels of cyathia bearing 4 or 5 green glands with broad white appendages, in long, white-margined upper leaves; cyathia ca. 8 mm across.

E. xmartinii: Terminal umbels of cyathia with 4 reddish-brown glands, within 2 green cuplike involucral bract-leaves.

E. polychroma: 5-rayed umbels of cyathia bearing 2 or 4 glands cupped by yellow-green involucral bract-leaves.

E. dulcis: Terminal umbels of cyathia with greenish yellow glands subtended by green to red triangular to rhombic involucral bract-leaves.

Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.