Euphorbia is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae.
The poinsettia is a commercially important flowering plant species of the diverse spurge family Euphorbiaceae. Indigenous to Mexico and Central America, the poinsettia was first described by Europeans in 1834. It is particularly well known for its red and green foliage and is widely used in Christmas floral displays. It derives its common English name from Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first United States minister to Mexico, who is credited with introducing the plant to the US in the 1820s. Poinsettias are shrubs or small trees, with heights of 0.6 to 4 m. Though often stated to be highly toxic, the poinsettia is not dangerous to pets or children. Exposure to the plant, even consumption, most often results in no effect, though it can cause nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
Euphorbia esula, commonly known as green spurge or leafy spurge, is a species of spurge native to central and southern Europe, and eastward through most of Asia north of the Himalaya to Korea and eastern Siberia. It can also be found in some parts of Alaska.
Euphorbia heterophylla, also known under the common names of Mexican fireplant, painted euphorbia, Japanese poinsettia, paintedleaf, painted spurge and milkweed, is a plant belonging to the Euphorbiaceae or spurge family.
Euphorbia myrsinites, the myrtle spurge, blue spurge, or broad-leaved glaucous-spurge, is a succulent species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae.
Chamaesyce is a subgenus of plants in the family Euphorbiaceae. Recent phylogenetic studies have shown that Chamaesyce is deeply nested within the broader Euphorbia. Specifically, Chamaesyce is very closely related to plants like Euphorbia pulcherrima, the popular poinsettia. Currently, all species have now been reclassified as species of Euphorbia. Specifically, this group now belongs to Euphorbia subgenus Chamaesyce section Anisophyllum. Taxonomically speaking, Chamaesyce is considered a synonym of Euphorbia.
Euphorbia antisyphilitica is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae. It is native to the Trans-Pecos of Texas and southern New Mexico in the United States as well as Chihuahua, Coahuila, Hidalgo, and Querétaro in Mexico. Common names include candelilla and wax plant, but the latter is more often applied to members of the unrelated genus Hoya. It is shrubby and has densely clustered, erect, essentially leafless stems that are covered in wax to prevent transpiration.
Euphorbia lathyris, the caper spurge or paper spurge, is a species of spurge native to southern Europe, northwest Africa, and eastward through southwest Asia to western China.
Euphorbia corollata is an herbaceous perennial plant in the family Euphorbiaceae that is native to North America. A common name for the species is flowering spurge. It has a milky sap that can cause skin and eye irritation in some people. It grows up to 1 m (3 ft) tall, with smooth stems and light green leaves arranged alternately or in whorls. Leaves are about 10 mm wide and 75 mm (3 in) long. Each stem terminates in a panicle 20 to 25 mm across. Flowers are about 6 mm across and consist of one pistillate and several staminate flowers surrounded by five white bracts - not petals but formed from the involucre at the base of the flowers. Flowering spurge blooms from June to September.
Euphorbia eriantha is a species of spurge known by the common name beetle spurge. It is also called the Desert Poinsettia and Mexican Poinsettia. It is native to the deserts of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States from California to Texas. Its flowering season is from February to October in Arizona; March to April in California; January to December in Texas.This is an annual herb reaching anywhere from 15 to 50 centimeters in height. The leaves are long, narrow, and pointed, sometimes with sparse hairs, and 2 to 7 centimeters long. The foliage may be dark in color, from greenish to purplish or reddish. The inflorescence appears at the tip of the branch and contains staminate or pistillate flowers which are just a few millimeters wide. The fruit is an oblong, hairy capsule half a centimeter long, with gray and black mottling. It contains bumpy white or gray seeds.
Euphorbia nutans is a species of Euphorbia known by the common names eyebane and nodding spurge. It is native to much of the United States, Eastern Canada, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and Venezuela.
Euphorbia prostrata is a species of spurge known by the common name prostrate spurge or prostrate sandmat.
Euphorbia subg. Poinsettia is a subgenus deriving from the genus Euphorbia, and is endemic to North America. It contains around 24 species, most famously E. pulcherrima, the poinsettia which grows wild in the mountains on the Pacific slope of Mexico. Despite many legends, no one knows from which wild population the cultivated varieties derive.
Euphorbia deltoidea is a species of flowering plant endemic to Florida in the United States. The taxonomy of the plant is difficult, with some authorities dividing it into four subspecies and some into three; also, it is frequently listed as a member of the old genus Chamaesyce. One subspecies, ssp. deltoidea, is a federally listed endangered species called deltoid spurge. It is found only in Miami-Dade County. Another subspecies, ssp. adhaerens, is often included with it under the name deltoidea instead of separately, making it difficult to keep count of how many endangered plants there are. This is generally dealt with by placing the "endangered species" label on any taxon within the species that is limited to Miami-Dade County, however many names they may have.
Euphorbia missurica, commonly called prairie sandmat, or Missouri spurge, is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae). It is native to North America, where it is found primarily in area of the Great Plains. Its natural habitat is in dry, often calcareous areas, including glades, bluffs, and open woodlands.
Euphorbia virgata, commonly known as leafy spurge, wolf's milk leafy spurge, or wolf's milk is a species of spurge native to Europe and Asia, and introduced in North America, where it is an invasive species.
Euphorbia davidii, known as David's spurge or toothed spurge, is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae. It is an annual herb growing up to 2 feet tall. Leaves are opposite in arrangement with narrow to broadly elliptic blades.
Euphorbia discoidalis, commonly known as summer spurge, is a flowering plant. A dicot, it grows across parts of the southern United States. It reaches about 18 inches (460 mm) in height and has white flowers in the late summer and early fall. It is part of the Euphorbiaceae (spurge) family and the genus Euphorbia.
Euphorbia bicolor, commonly known as snow on the prairie, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Euphorbia, native to the southern United States. It grows 1-4 feet tall, has green and white alternate leaves, and is monoecious with unisexual flowers. It grows in hard clay soils of prairies, rangelands, and edges of forests.
Euphorbia brachycera is a species of flowering plant in the Euphorbiaceae family. It is referred to by the common name horned spurge and is native to Northern Mexico and the Rocky Mountains of the US. It is a rhizomatous herbaceous perennial growing in spreading mats, with narrow green leaves and yellow flowerheads. It can grow up to 2 feet tall. Some of its habitats include canyons, sandy or gravelly slopes, pine-oak woodlands, and mixed coniferous forest.
