Flowering Spurge, Euphorbia corollata L., Native Minnesota Wildflower plant, Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden

	Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
	Common Name	Scientific Name	Plant Family	Garden Location	Prime Season
	Flowering Spurge	Euphorbia corollata L.	Spurge	Upland	Late Summer to Autumn
Other names and notes	Small white flowers in open clusters branching out above a distinctive whorl of leaves, which are otherwise alternate below the whorl. The small flowers have 5 petal like parts that are actually flower bracts. Juice of the plant is milky, as in most spurges. Grows up to 3 feet high, the stem unbranched below the inflorescence. Grows best in full sun with dry to moderate moisture. The genus name, Euphorbia, is said to refer to Euphorbus, a Greek physician.


	Flowers of Late August	The characteristic leaf whorl at top of stem

Notes: Eloise Butler first recorded planting this species in the Garden on July 27, 1910. This plant was listed on Martha Crone's 1951 inventory of plants in the Garden at that time. It is native to Minnesota in counties along the East side of the State from Pine south to the SE corner plus St. Louis County and Renville. General US distribution is the eastern half of the country.

Eloise wrote of this plant: "On dry or sandy soil by the roadsides and on the prairies, throughout the rest of the season, will be found the flowering spurge, Euphorbia corollata. On account of its white, filmy, lace-like inflorescence, it is much used by florists to set off other flowers in bouquets. What seem to be petals in the flower cluster are colored bracts. The flowers themselves are inconspicuous. The euphorbias form a large family of highly specialized plants, including the small-leaved, pestiferous weedmats [or sandmats], poinsettias and trees in the tropics. One of the characters is a milky sap, which is, in the rubber tree, now indispensable to man." Published July 30, 1911, Minneapolis Sunday Tribune

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References: Plant characteristics are generally from sources 15, 16, 30, 31, 33, W2 & W3. Distribution principally from W2 and also 31, 34 and W1. Planting history generally from 1, 4 & 4a. Other sources by specific reference. See Reference List for details.

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