Caper spurge?

[DavidJO]

These are growing beside a path not far from my front door! I've got them down as Caper Spurge - Euphorbia Lathyris - is that right?
I'm guessing they have escaped from somewhere but I haven't seen any in local gardens. The books say it may be a native to Southern England. Does anyone know more about them? A great find or are they everywhere?

[Deb London]

I got my Rose key out and it said that the strap-shaped leaves are opposite, in 4 vertical rows. I was puzzling over the phrase "vertical rows" and I looked at your picture David, and that's exactly right. I think Rose suggests that growing along a path they might well be a garden escapee. But in woods they can be a native. Is that a wood next to your path?

[aeshna5]

They seem to turn up almost spontaneously in gardens sometimes. It certainly seems to be on the increase in the London area; I've seen quite a bit recently.

[Johnny81]

I have found the odd specimen also, around villages in Northamptonshire.
Here is one I took last year growing just outside a front garden, unsure if it is a variety though.

[DavidJO]

Not a wood, just a hedgerow. The local council are meant to keep it neat and tidy, but luckily they are really hopeless at this (the people sent to do it spend most of the time sitting in their van reading the paper) so all sorts of interesting things are allowed to grow. I hate over-officious trimmers and tidiers!

[Hedera]

I had one of these turn up in a flowerpot with a camellia in it - I thought it must have come in with birdseed because the feeders were near it. It grew into a fine plant, which I had never seen before.

[Jackaroo]

Originally Posted by DavidJO

Not a wood, just a hedgerow. The local council are meant to keep it neat and tidy, but luckily they are really hopeless at this (the people sent to do it spend most of the time sitting in their van reading the paper) so all sorts of interesting things are allowed to grow. I hate over-officious trimmers and tidiers!

As you've brought it up,the beggars can sometimes be all too efficient. I refer to an experimental wild area I decided to cultivate on the the bank on the outside of my garden fence just to see if it encouraged something interesting to take up residence.On our side of the road most of us have this relatively narrow strip which we maintain as is our wont and the other side of the road is where the fields start. Now they usually confine themselves to flailing the field side of the road but for some reason best known to themselves they went to the trouble of jinking over to my side, which involved dodging around a mature beech tree, just to 'take out' my 'nature reserve'! In the process they also decimated the sapling birches I'd reared from birch keys.Sometimes it's hard to do the right thing!! Sighhhh.

[King Edward]

According to the BSBI this is a long-established introduction (archaeophyte), well naturalised especially in the southern half of England. It grows in all sorts of disturbed ground.

We have it growing in various places around our garden (Herefordshire), with a particularly nice plant growing up from the floor of the greenhouse and now touching the roof.

[Dorts]

I think Caper Spurge is a great plant for the garden and would always consider it in any planting scheme for its architectural qualities. It is strictly a biennial, but seeds very freely. Once you have grown it in the garden, chances are it will keep popping up. Dormant seeds can remain fertile for many years.

Like most Euphorbia's, it contains a sap which can be a severe irritant. Even the slightest amount getting into the eyes or mouth can cause long-lasting pain or discomfort, (as I have experienced on more than one occasion).

So if you have small children or pets, it's probably best to give it a miss.
Dorts.

[thebeard]

sorry to bring this up again but i have some growing in my garden, will it survive the winter. as it'd be nice to have it flower next year!