Euphorbia

Can someone please help me with the pros and cons of euphorbia. Is there one that I can keep to at about 4ft high?

G.

 

I like E. characias wulfenii, flowers early and tends to be around 4ft as you cut out all flowered stems each year.
I've also got E. griffithii but it struggles and tends to die down by mid summer.

 

Gary, check out E. Ascot Rainbow or Tasman Tiger prob the best foliage varieties.
However, my own favourite is Polychroma; a sumptuous mound of yellow flowers in May to late June....herbaceous though
Remember, if you have children there, the sap on all euphorbias is caustic

 

Some Euphorbia are not that hardy but lots are, just take care when buying. Have a look at Euphorbia Fireglow. Quite dramatic in "flower", very easy and undemanding but only grows to about 3 ft not 4. Increases rapidly so you don't need to buy lots of plants to fill a big gap. Looks good for ages but is herbaceous so nothing to see during the winter. Glad to see you too grow lots of Crocosmia Lucifer? @shiney. It's such a great herbaceous plant and to my mind every garden that has herbaceous borders should grow it.However there seems to be a bit of plant snobbishness about it! maybe comes from the dreaded original Montbretia which I have managed to eradicate from my garden altho I did see some skulking about up near our wood last year...note to self to try and remember to get rid of it!

 

Silu, the invasive tendencies of Fireglow/griffithii should be pointed out. It is one of the worst spreaders so anyone looking for a nice compact perennial in his/her small to medium size garden should think twice about this one. It grew 120 to 150 cm here. In a friend's wild garden it makes 180 cm.
I grew this for a couple of years or so and it started to appear among other nearby plants. Took me a few years to finally eradicate it.....it sends down deep roots then resurfaces often several metres away from the parent plant. Lovely plant but a thug to be wary of I think

 

I did say @Verdun it increases rapidly and I doubt the RHS shop would sell serious thugs. They sell Fireglow and describe it as vigerous. Perhaps it is a serious spreader in your neck of the woods but not too much in the likes of mine. Yes agree not suitable for tiny gardens but wouldn't call it a thug in comparison to many other herbaceous plants. Jack only mentioned height wanted not spread.

 

The great Christopher Lloyd grew his own version of it, Dixter, that he admitted was very similar if not identical to Fireglow. He too remarked about its tendencies.....at Great Dixter,
Sussex.
You are right though Silu .....just pointing out it can spread a little.
One of the characteristics I look for into when adding any plants is its invasiveness; I avoid for this reason
Oh yes! The RHS does recommend invasive plants...many artemisisas (grow Limelight for example ), or Houttynia Chameleon or even some salvias.

 

Another vote for wulfenii; looks good in winter too.

 

It tends to die in my garden, too dry I'm guessing, the variety I have is supposedly "Dixter, bought it about 20yrs ago and it still comes up around now, does a bit and dies back by early July.
Its in a shady position.

 

Try digging it out Pete......see if the roots have spread. You might be surprised how far they have done

 

they might have spread, I dont know, but they certainly ain't surfacing anywhere.
Its still within 2 ft of where I planted it.