Spurge Family

Various species of spurges are grown as showy plants in horticulture. Care must be taken with these plants, because their milky latex is very acrid, and can injure skin and moist membranes. The milder symptoms of contact with the latex of spurges include a dermatitis of the skin. The eyes are especially sensitive, and can be exposed to the latex if a contaminated hand is used to scratch an eye. Severe, untreated exposure of the eyes to spurge latex can easily lead to blindness. Spurges are also toxic if eaten, and children have been poisoned and even killed by eating the foliage or seeds of ornamental spurges.

The most familiar horticultural species of spurge is the poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima), a native plant of Mexico. The poinsettia is often kept as a houseplant around Christmas time in North America. This plant has rather inconspicuous clusters of flowers, but these are surrounded by bright red, pink, or greenish-white leaves, which are intended to draw the attention of pollinating insects.

The crown-of-thorns euphorbia (Euphorbia splendens) is a cactus-like plant native to Madagascar, with spiny branches and attractive clusters of red-bracted flowers, which is commonly grown as a houseplant or outside in warm climates around the world. Another tropical African species is the naboom (Euphorbia ingens). This is a tree-sized, cactus-like plant, with large, segmented and virtually leafless, green, photosynthetic stems. It is also commonly cultivated in homes and warm gardens. Another unusual species is the pencil cactus (Euphorbia tirucalli), with thin, green, almost-leafless, photosynthetic stems.

The genus Croton has many species that are grown for their colorful foliage in homes and greenhouses, or outside in warm climates.

The castor bean can also be grown outdoors in frost-free regions as an ornamental plant, because of its interesting, large-leafed, dissected foliage.