Nearly every gardener has heard of Euphorbias and many have grown them. Understanding what a diverse and fascinating group of plants is another issue. From the well known commercial garden plants such as Euphorbia ‘Diamond Frost’ and Euphorbia milii commonly…
Wood Spurge Euphorbia amygdaloides or ‘Wood spurge’ is an evergreen plant that is at home in both sun and shade. Masses of flowers from spring to summer you do need to wear gloves as the sap is an irritant. Perhaps…
A varied group of succulents from the Mediterranean, Euphorbia characias have also been highly used in hybridisation with many useful garden plants resulting. They thrive in dry sunny positions and are a useful addition to the perennial border or rock…
The ‘Crown of Thorns’ Although Euphorbia millii is better known as the ‘Crown of Thorns’ those that we see in cultivation are mainly hybrids. These are a succulent plant however they do require a little more water than most. With…
Euphorbia tirucalli or ‘Firestick plant’ is a leafless succulent that forma a small shrub over time. Species and cultivars include: Euphorbia tirucalli ‘Rosea’ (Euphorbia tirucalli ‘Firesticks’) which is a sun loving drought tolerant euphorbia well suited to growing in rock…
One of the really spectacular species Haworthia reinwardtii is a stemless species and will form a clump over time. So if you are looking offsets for propagation be patient. The deep green to nearly black foliage color is influenced by…
A wonderful low growing species Haworthia maughanii has almost translucent leaves with white markings. The leaves look short or truncated but actually grow further beneath the soil. This underground habit makes this succulent very drought tolerant and an excellent easy…
With attractive foliage year round, Haworthia species provide a great deal of variety in small growing succulents. With fleshy foliage, often patterned with brown or white spots they make excellent container plants. Many species have translucent leaves and these are…
syn. Aylostera muscula Originally from the southern parts of Bolivia, Rebutia muscula, (Aylostera muscula) with furry snowy white white spines and contrasting bright orange flowers to 2cm is a fascinating plant. In time this is a clump forming species and…
If you are looking for a cactus with brilliant flowers then Trichocereus grandiflorus is probably it. Native to Argentina this is a spring to summer flowering succulent with many hybrids now available. Over time it can grow stems to around…
