code: 501
Very few good individual seeds are ever collected
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Common name: Chrome Spurge, Cushion Spurge. Euphorbia epithymoides
Plant Classification: Hardy perennial
Minimum Height: 25 cm
Maximum Height: 40 cm
Packet Content(approx.): 10
Making a compact dome, this clump-forming herbaceous gem pushes up leafy stems and dazzling terminal clusters of acid-yellow flowers, which open in late spring to early summer. One of the very choicest and most flamboyant of this group of plants being native to Libya, Turkey, and the east, middle, and south east of Europe, it is surprisingly tough and hardy in gardens. Very few good individual seeds are ever collected.
Sowing advice:
For best results, sow seeds immediately onto a good soil-based compost. Cover the seeds with fine grit or compost
to approximately their own depth. They can be sown at any time, and germination can sometimes be quicker if kept at 15 to 20 degrees C. However, we sow most seeds in an unheated greenhouse and wait for natural germination as many seeds have built-in dormancy mechanisms, and often wait for spring before emerging regardless of when they are sown. But spring sowing will obviously give them a full season of growth if successful germination occurs.
Awards:
Won the prestigious Award of Garden Merit by the Royal Horticultural Society (1993)
Gardening tips:
Remaining attractive during all its growing season, this remarkable plant is resilient to most pests and diseases, is drought, deer & rabbit tolerant and is easy to care for.
A full sun lover (tolerates light shade), it thrives in dry, well – drained soils. Poor soils, including rock or sandy ones are welcomed!
Main varieties are Euphorbia ‘Bonfire’ – 10 in. tall (25 cm) with leaves emerging green but quickly turning burgundy contrasting with the bright yellow bracts in spring; Euphorbia ‘Candy’ (‘Purpurea’) – 12-18 in. tall (30-45 cm) with purple stems and purplish leaves and pale-yellow flower heads; Euphorbia ‘Emerald Jade’ – 12 in. tall (30 cm) with showy bright green floral bracts and fall foliage.
Consequences:
All parts of the plant are highly toxic if ingested. The milky sap may cause irritation to skin and eyes
