Euphorbia lathyris

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Euphorbia lathyris
Euphorbia lathyris Sturm33.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Genus: Euphorbia
Species:
E. lathyris
Binomial name
Euphorbia lathyris
L.
Synonyms

Euphorbia lathyrus( lapsus )

Euphorbia lathyris, the caper spurge or paper spurge, is a species of spurge native to southern Europe (Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal), northwest Africa, and eastward through southwest Asia to western China. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Other names occasionally used include gopher spurge, gopher plant or mole plant. [1]

Growth

It is an erect biennial (occasionally annual) plant growing up to 1.5 m tall, with a glaucous blue-green stem. The leaves are arranged in decussate opposite pairs, and are lanceolate, 5–15 cm long and 1-2.5 cm broad, glaucous blue-green with a waxy texture and pale greenish-white midrib and veins. The flowers are green to yellow-green, 4 mm diameter, with no petals. The seeds are green ripening to brown or grey, produced in globular clusters 13–17 mm diameter of three seeds compressed together. [3] [4]

Chemical characteristics

All parts of the plant, including the seeds and roots, are poisonous. Handling may cause skin irritation as the plant produces latex. While poisonous to humans and most livestock, goats sometimes eat it and are immune to the toxin. However, the toxin can be passed through the goat's milk. [5]

Habitat

Away from its native range, it is widely naturalised in many regions, where it is often considered an invasive weed. [1] [2] [4] It grows in partial shade to full sun in USDA zones 5–9.

Uses

It is used in folk medicine as a remedy for cancer, corns, and warts and has purportedly been used by beggars to induce skin boils. [6]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Euphorbia esula</i> Species of plant

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<i>Euphorbia heterophylla</i> Species of plant in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to tropical and subtropical America

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<i>Euphorbia helioscopia</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Euphorbia myrsinites</i> Species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae

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<i>Cupressus bakeri</i> Species of conifer

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<i>Euphorbia tithymaloides</i> Species of plant

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<i>Menispermum canadense</i> Species of plant

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<i>Euphorbia tirucalli</i> Species of plant

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<i>Euphorbia peplis</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Euphorbia peplus</i> Species of plant

Euphorbia peplus, is a species of Euphorbia, native to most of Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia, where it typically grows in cultivated arable land, gardens, and other disturbed land.

<i>Euphorbia lactea</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Tropaeolum majus</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Tropaeolaceae

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<i>Daphne laureola</i> Species of plant

Daphne laureola, commonly called spurge-laurel, is a shrub in the flowering plant family Thymelaeaceae. Despite the name, this woodland plant is neither a spurge nor a laurel. Its native range covers much of Europe and extends to Algeria, Morocco and the Azores. With Daphne mezereum it is one of two species of Daphne native to Britain, both of which have a strong preference for alkaline soils and are most commonly found in limestone areas, although D. laureola is also found on clay. However, unlike D. mezereum, D. laureola is an evergreen with yellowish green flowers borne very early in the spring and black berries, which are poisonous to humans but not to birds, present from late summer. All parts of the plants are poisonous. The sap is known to cause skin rashes on contact.

<i>Euphorbia corollata</i> Species of flowering plant

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.

<i>Euphorbia paralias</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Euphorbia balsamifera</i> Species of flowering plant in the spurge family Euphorbiaceae

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<i>Euphorbia celastroides</i> species of plant in the family Euphorbiaceae

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<i>Iris glaucescens</i> Species of plant

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Euphorbia lathyris". Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  2. 1 2 Flora Europaea: Euphorbia lathyris
  3. 1 2 Blamey, M. & Grey-Wilson, C. (1989). Flora of Britain and Northern Europe. ISBN   0-340-40170-2
  4. 1 2 Huxley, A, ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. ISBN   0-333-47494-5
  5. Poisonous Plant Information: Caper Spurge Archived 2006-10-20 at the Wayback Machine
  6. Purdue University: Euphorbia lathyris