I love euphorbia. Years ago I was wandering round what my memory tells me was a garden somewhere near the Cotswolds (though its name I have forgotten). There was a large bed with euphorbia wulfenii growing in it; I pointed at it and said to my friend “That’s the plant I want.” And from the ground came the voice of the gardener or maybe the owner, quietly working the bed, who gave me his trowel and said: “Go on. Take one.” So I did – a small cutting, wrapped in damp newspaper – and planted it at home. It did not, sadly, last. But my love affair with euphorbias has.
There is something magnificent about them: structural, with wonderful flowers (technically bracts) and such a range of colours: zingy green, a glaucous blue-green, orange and dark green and a soft lemon at the top. So welcome in spring and just made to be paired with tulips and other spring bulbs. They can be the large blowsy plant at the back of a border or at the front or at the base of roses. Or in shady spots. Or just about anywhere. There is a euphorbia for every spot.
But my favourite is euphorbia characias wulfenii: the biggest show-off of the lot. Last year I planted 3 small ones around the base of my apple tree. This is the result. The tree seems to rise up above a sea of euphorbia, amongst which are interspersed Ballerina tulips,growing up through a euphorbia mellifera.
This is euphorbia mellifera, planted on the other side of the apple tree. There is a matching one under the pear tree at the other end of this bed.
There are two characteristics of this which delight: the sharp green of its narrow leaves and the delicious honey smell from its small bracts. These are just beginning to show themselves.
But beware – it can grow enormous and take over. So it does need cutting back every year or so to keep it manageable.
It is not the only euphorbia I have planted, of course. Another favourite is griffithii “Fireglow” which has intense orange-red flowers in early summer. Here it is just starting to show itself. Orange is a wonderful colour to have in a garden: stunning with purple and blues or against dark leaves of all kinds. I have it planted here in front of redcurrant and blackcurrant bushes, providing a welcome pop of colour before the later summer flowers around it take the stage.
