Euphorbia is a plant that belongs to decorative cultures. Its advantages include non-standard appearance and unpretentiousness. In alternative medicine, the plant is used to treat many diseases. Euphorbia is often called euphorbia.
Biological description
What does the flower Euphorbia look like: Euphorbia culture refers to annual or perennial herbaceous shrubs, is a representative of the Euphorbia family. Succulents have lush foliage and shoots that have the ability to accumulate moisture. In case of accidental damage to leaf platinum from the wounds, milky juice is released that protects the plant from the attack of parasitic insects.
Blooming Euphorbia
Juice includes:
- amino acids;
- sterol;
- rubber;
- essential oil;
- resin;
- sugar.
Important! If juice gets on the skin, inflammation can occur, as a result of a superficial burn. When caring for horticultural crops, thick gloves must be used.
Perennial euphorbia develops like a tree or shrub, looks like a cactus. Succulents prefers a tropical or subtropical climate. Deciduous plates of a plant come in different shapes:
- notched;
- oval;
- narrow;
- whole-land;
- ovoid.
Euphorbia alba
At the milkweed cactus, the leaves are opposite, in the inflorescence there are one pistillate flower and stamens of the male subspecies. The buds are divided into groups using bracts of foliage, painted in various shades. Culture blooms in June - July.
Important! Some subspecies of yellow milkweed open buds only with the arrival of autumn coolness.
Common types and varieties
The plant has many varieties. Types of milkweed differ in different color of petals, the shape of stems and foliage, size.
Euphorbia multiflorum
It is considered an unpretentious shrub growing up to 70 cm. The species is known for its frost resistance, unusual beauty. The inflorescences located at the ends of the shoots have a yellow-golden tone. Hue can change throughout the season, turning into a light green color.
Budding takes place from May to July, shrubs retain their decorativeness until the October days. Leaf plates of an unusual lemon color culture.
Euphorbia multiflorum
Beautiful euphorbia
The second name of the beautiful milkweed is poinsetia. The formation of buds begins at 2-3 weeks of December, the inflorescences have bright red, pink and white tones, but they look inconspicuous in comparison with bright green foliage.
The shrub prefers well-lit places. In the hot season, it must be shaded from direct sunlight. Otherwise, expect the appearance of burns.
Important! When kept indoors, the plant requires a stable temperature regime of 8–9 degrees Celsius. With proper care, the culture pleases with the abundant formation of buds.
Euphorbia almond-shaped
Otherwise, this type of milkweed is called purpuria. The culture refers to dicotyledonous plants growing in all European territories. It can be found in clearings in deciduous forests, in dense bushes and near fences. The height of the shrub does not exceed 0.7 m. It has erect shoots and branched roots, and the bark on the stems quickly stiffens. Dense green foliage no more than 1 cm, oblong-oval in shape, without notches at the edges.
Inflorescences of the plant do not have petals, they are similar in shape to bells. Inside the buds are small nectaries with long legs. The subspecies has unusual bright green petals, collected 5 pieces in inflorescences. Peduncles grow to 0.5 m, densely covered with foliage. Budding begins in April and ends in 3 months.
Euphorbia edged
It is an annual herbaceous plant, with growth up to 80 cm. The second name is the bride, which arose due to its non-standard flowering. When planting several shrubs nearby, it seems that the entire flowerbed is covered with snow.
Leaf culture plates are decorated with a whitish border, small buds are located on top of the shoots. During one season, the color of the leaves may change. Shrubs require protection from draft and gusty winds. Euphorbia Mountain snow budding takes place from June to October.
Euphorbia myrtifolia
Otherwise, this euphorbia is called obese. The shoots of this exotic subspecies spread along the ground. Foliage is known for its bluish tint, densely dotted with stems. In height, the plant, like the trihedral euphorbia, grows up to 25 cm. The leaves in shape resemble geometric figures. During the growing season, buds change their color, have a pleasant smell. Designers are advised to plant this species in places with adequate lighting and calcareous soil.
Euphorbia myrtifolia
Cypress Euphorbia
Exotic perennial, common in Western European territories. Needle-type foliage, with proper pruning, the bushes become like fluffy balls. From the first weeks of June, small buds of yellowish or pale pink color are formed on them. With standard care of the bushes, you can get additional flowering in early autumn.
Cypress euphorbia is not afraid of drought and frost, during the growing season foliage changes its main color to a bluish tone. External features allow the use of culture in landscape design to create mixborders, alpine slides and rockeries. Gardeners love to combine it with irises.
Important! The botanical description of the plant indicates that its milky juice contains poison, which can poison domestic animals and children. Self-medication attempts by the green part of the culture often do more harm than good. Poisoning and burns are frequent companions of lovers of such an alternative medicine.
Cypress Euphorbia
Other varieties and species
There are many other cultural options:
- Euphorbia Akalifa or foxtail is an evergreen strongly branched shrub up to 0.6 m in size. Egg-shaped leaf plates have small denticles along the edges, bright red flowers collected in spike-type inflorescences. Buds are formed from March to October. Bushes require planting in places with sufficient light, they can be propagated, like comb euphorbia, by cuttings.
- Bupleurum-leaved - is a rare subspecies, characterized by weak branching and growth up to 18-22 cm. Spiral tubercles are located throughout the shoots. The buds are placed on high peduncles. Plant propagation is carried out only by the seed method.
- Canary - a tree growing to 12 m in height. Branches in diameter reach 5 cm, tubercles and double spines of a brownish hue are localized in the region of the ribs. Canary type is often grown in houses or apartments. Euphorbia palm need to be abundantly watered only in hot and sultry weather, the rest of the time it is done only as the substrate dries. You can propagate the tree with cuttings or seeds.
- Euphorbia Sinadenium is an exotic shrub grown in residential conditions. It is a tall plant from which breeders bred about 20 subspecies. Some of them can grow up to 3 m in height.
- Toothed spurge - refers to weeds included in the list of quarantine facilities of the EAEU. Annual with a growth of 20-50 cm, foliage, decorated along the edge with denticles. Inflorescences with a yellowish or cream color.
Cacti Euphorbia
- Ribbed euphorbia - its stems of a dark green tone of a pentahedral type without side branches are decorated with large, elongated-oval leaves. The foliage is located on reddish petioles, its wrong side is lighter and serves as a reflector for additional illumination of the green part of the bush. Buds are pinkish or whitish in color with two petals.
- Euphorbia resiniferous is a meter-long succulent shrub with a diameter of up to 2 m. It has a vertical stem with four faces, resembles a cactus in structure, covered with paired spikes on the ribs, with fine brownish foliage. Used in medicine for the manufacture of plasters and ointments.
- Euphorbia Tirucalli grows on depleted soils unsuitable for agriculture. When grown indoors, it can grow up to 6 m. Young plants have a bright green color of the stems, while old plants have a dark gray color. The foliage is dark green, up to 12 cm long, falls off-season (in adult crops it is absent).
Important! Euphorbia, whose species number more than 2 thousand varieties, require a certain content. A common mistake is the belief that culture cannot live without the scorching sun and heat. Some varieties prefer partial shade, while most when directly exposed to sunlight, it burns and is sick for a long time.
Features of plant care
If the culture is properly looked after, then from the majority of subspecies, abundant bud formation can be achieved. The list of mandatory procedures includes:
- Top dressing. During abundant bud formation, special solutions are used to fertilize cacti and succulents. The mixture is added every two weeks. Nitrogen dressing is prohibited for species with spherical and thick stems - they can cause cracking of the shoot surface.
- Lighting. Constant scattered light is needed by the bushes in both summer and winter (at least 10 hours). In hot weather and the scorching sun they are shaded with special garden nets to protect against burns. In the cold season, a phytolamp is used at home. Subspecies that resemble cacti in shape need direct sunlight.
- Pruning. It begins to be carried out immediately after the last bud withers. Strongly grown shoots are cut off - their upper part. This approach helps shape the desired shape of the crown. Dry stems are excised, and the shoots of renewal are reduced. After the procedure, the buds will appear in one season, but the bush will bloom more abundantly.
- Disembarkation and transplantation. Shrubs require annual transplant work. They are carried out in the spring, at the very beginning of the growing season. They use a special soil mixture for succulents and cacti. Each new pot should be 2 cm larger than the previous one (in height).
- Humidity. The culture calmly tolerates drought, spraying is required for hygienic purposes.
- Temperature. The optimum temperature for home subspecies is + 20 ... +25 degrees. In winter, the plant goes to rest. To plant flower buds, he is sent to a cool room (+14 degrees). Succulent is tolerant of drops, but it does not survive drafts.
- Watering. Abundant hydration of the substrate is required after it dries by a quarter of the total contents of the pot. Water should not stagnate, soil acidification should not be allowed (so subspecies with thick stems will quickly decay).
Euphorbia trihedral
Milkweed Diseases
Euphorbia is characterized by increased resistance to diseases and parasitic insects. Diseases of decorative culture are associated with non-compliance with the rules of cultivation. The main symptoms of the disease:
- Yellowing of most foliage in summer. This is due to waterlogging of the substrate or constant being in a draft.
- The yellowness of some leaf blades from the bottom row. This is a natural process.
- Yellow leaves in the fall. So the plant is preparing for winter holidays.
- Brownish spots on foliage and trunk of a shrub. This is a sign of a burn from direct sunlight.
- Lots of brownish spots. Thus, rotting develops, associated with stagnation of moisture in the substrate.
Beautiful euphorbia
Euphorbia is one of the most common plants in the world. These include about two thousand subspecies. Many varieties are used for landscaping when decorating home gardens.
