Euphorbia characias
Euphorbiaceae
February (January in 2024) to May
It is grown throughout the UK. The escape has a similar
distribution.but is less common in the North
For a map see the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland –
It is a neophyte from the eastern Mediterranean and has
been grown in the UK since the mid 1610s. It was first
noted as an escape in the wild in the mid 1680s.
It is frequently grown in UK gardens for its vibrant yellow
colour in the winterand and has become naturalized
in a range of waste places such as by roads and paths,
hedge banks, etc.. It is tolerant of cold and salt so is
common planted in amenity areas by the coast. Wild
plants can be seed sown or from garden throwouts.
Mediterranean Spurge is a clump-forming perennial
herb growing up to 120cm.
The stems are biennial with the flowers developing
in a striking tuft around January on the previous
year's stems.
Flowers are monoecious on a shallow yellow cup,
a cyathium, made up of hairy sepal-like bracts.
Several small male flowers surround the female flower.
They are difficult to see in detail. Each male flower
has one stamen.
Female flowers have 3 styles with bifid stigmas.
At the base of the flowers are 5 crescent-shaped
glands.
Fruits are globular capsules.
Leaves are linear and blue-grey in whorls up the
stem.
Stems are brown and woody.
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