Some large Euphorbias are popular as garden flowers, some small Euphorbias are despised as garden weeds; funny world isn't it? The one Euphorbia amygdaloides is better known as wood spurge and is neither!
Wood spurge is quite a large plant and it grows freely in broad-leaf woodlands. It is amongst the few plants that actually thrive in shade and but it still likes to flower early, between March and May, before the upper tree canopy gets too dense with leaves. The flowers are rather curious, as are most flowers in this family, being yellowish green and appearing a little like disk shaped leaves. Although it does set seed its main way of spreading is by under ground rhizomes and it can become quite dominant in places.
This is not a plant for the herbalist. The stems contain a milky substance that is toxic and can cause irritation if it you get it on your skin so it is best left alone!
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