7 variegated euphorbias
Discover the most beautiful varieties
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Counting more than 2000 species, euphorbias form a large group of plants with highly variable appearances, often showcasing a graphic and elegant silhouette. While many of them delight us with their bright flowering in green and yellow hues, they are also valued for their foliage, which comes in a wide range of colours! Euphorbias with variegated leaves, combining at least two different shades, are precious for enlivening a border and bringing brightness to the garden! Discover in this guide our selection of the most beautiful euphorbias with variegated foliage, along with some tips for growing and pairing them in the garden. If you would like more information about euphorbias, feel free to consult our guide Euphorbias: planting, growing and care.
Euphorbia characias ‘Tasmanian Tiger’
The Euphorbia characias ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ is one of the most beautiful variegated spurges. Its upright stems bear long, slender leaves of bluish-green, broadly marginate with cream-yellow. Evergreen, its leaves remain decorative throughout the year, even in winter. Its very bright foliage is ideal for lightening borders or creating lovely colour contrasts. Moreover, in April-May, the ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ spurge produces a superb flowering of the same colour (cream-yellow), which adds even more brightness! This is a medium-sized spurge, reaching up to 80 cm in height and 50 cm in spread. Like other Euphorbia characias, it thrives in full sun, in perfectly drained, even dry, poor, and stony soil. This spurge is perfect for creating a contrasting border, for example alongside the Ajuga reptans ‘Black Scallop’, Sedum ‘Black Knight’, the houseleek ‘Dark Beauty’, Phormium ‘Black Adder’, and the spurge ‘Black Bird’. Integrate some variegated foliage to accompany the ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ spurge: for example, the Arabis coburgii ‘Variegata’, Sedum ‘Atlantis’, and Caryopteris ‘Electrum’.
The Euphorbia characias ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ features bluish-green foliage marginate with cream
Euphorbia martinii 'Ascot Rainbow'
Very original, Euphorbia martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow’ is a stunning variety with bluish-green leaves finely edged in golden yellow. At the end of summer or early autumn, it produces young shoots tinged with red, creating a beautiful multicoloured effect! With its warm hues, it is one of the most colourful euphorbias! Its foliage is evergreen, ensuring a presence in the garden even in winter. This euphorbia flowers in April-May (or even until June depending on the climate) and then bears beautiful yellow inflorescences adorned with red nectariferous glands. Relatively compact, at maturity, it does not exceed 60 cm in all directions. It thrives in full sun and easily tolerates drought. However, in the gardens of southern France, you can comfortably place it in partial shade. It is perfect for a dry garden or rockery, alongside other water-wise plants. Enjoy its colourful foliage to create a stunning bed with warm tones, for example by pairing it with helianthemums, Phlomis fruticosa, Erysimum ‘Zwerg Jaune’, broom and Carex comans ‘Bronze Form’.
Euphorbia ‘Ascot Rainbow’ is valued for its very colourful foliage, in warm tones! (photo Valleybrook Gardens)
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Euphorbia characias 'Glacier Blue'
In contrast to the previous variety, the ‘Glacier Blue’ Spurge stands out with its cool tones. It features bluish leaves marginate with white, which appear silvery grey when viewed from a distance. From April to June, it produces greenish-white inflorescences at the top of its stems. Derived from the ‘Tasmanian Tiger’ variety, it shares bluish hues that bring a sense of freshness to the borders. Rather compact, it reaches up to 50-60 cm in all directions. It will easily fit into the composition of a romantic-style border, for example, by pairing it with the soft flowering of nepeta, ceanothus, and Phlomis cashmeriana, as well as with silvery foliage, such as that of Stachys byzantina and wormwoods. It pairs beautifully with grasses, such as Helictotrichon sempervirens and fescues.
The finely marginate bluish leaves of Euphorbia characias ‘Glacier Blue’
Euphorbia polychroma 'Variegata'
Euphorbia polychroma ‘Variegata’ is a beautiful variety with green leaves marginate with cream. It flowers in spring, in April-May, offering a stunning bright yellow flowering that is very luminous. It is unmatched for brightening up a border! Small in size, it measures between 40 and 50 cm in all directions. Unlike the other varieties presented here, Euphorbia polychroma ‘Variegata’ is deciduous. It thrives in full sun or partial shade and enjoys cool soils, although it also tolerates occasional drought. Use it to create a contrasting border of purple and anise colours! Enhance its colour by incorporating some plants with golden or anise-coloured leaves, such as Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’, Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’, Heuchera ‘Lime Rickey’, and Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’. Make its light foliage stand out by pairing it with Heuchera ‘Velvet Night’, the ‘Black Parrot’ tulip, and Euphorbia amygdaloides ‘Purpurea’. For shrubs, you might consider planting Hydrangea ‘Little Honey’ and Sambucus ‘Lemony Lace’, which will contrast beautifully with the foliage of Cotinus ‘Grace’.
Euphorbia polychroma ‘Variegata’ is a compact variety that bears green leaves edged with cream yellow (photo Guido)
Euphorbia characias 'Emmer Green'
Larger than other varieties, Euphorbia ‘Emmer Green’ is an impressive variety that reaches up to 90 cm in height. It features beautiful green leaves marginate with cream, which are evergreen. From April to July, it produces large inflorescences of yellow cyathia at the top of its stems. This variety has a very graphic and exotic style. In the garden, it thrives in full sun in well-drained, rather dry soil, making it perfect for enlivening a sunny rockery or a Mediterranean-style border. You can pair it, for example, with lavenders, helianthemums, santolines, cistus, and agaves.
Euphorbia characias ‘Emmer Green’ has upright stems, quite tall, adorned with long blue-green leaves edged in cream
Euphorbia characias 'Wilcot' ('Silver Swan')
Compact and ramified, Euphorbia ‘Wilcot’, also known as ‘Silver Swan’, forms a well-rounded clump, all in softness, that does not exceed 50 cm in height. It bears long dark green-grey leaves, delicately marginate with white. From a distance, the euphorbia appears silver (hence its name ‘Silver Swan’). It offers a spectacular flowering from March to May, with green flowers themselves marginate with cream white and equipped with reddish-brown nectariferous glands. Like other Euphorbia characias, this variety enjoys full sun and tolerates drought. Create a cool-toned border by pairing it, for example, with the blue-tinged foliage of Helictotrichon sempervirens and fescues, as well as the silver foliage of Stachys byzantina, Salvia argentea, Senecio cineraria, and the splendid Agave havardiana. You can also plant alongside them the Corsican euphorbia, Euphorbia myrsinites.
Euphorbia characias ‘Wilcot’ bears irregularly marginate blue-tinged leaves with cream white
Euphorbia marginata
Euphorbia marginata is a very beautiful annual botanical species, native to North America, and is naturally variegated. It has green foliage, with the upper leaves broadly marginate in pure white, earning it the lovely nickname “Mountain Snow”. It thrives in full sun, in rather dry, sandy, or stony soil. It flowers in autumn, from September to November, producing cymes of small white flowers surrounded by green and white bracts. Pair it, for example, with the variegated foliage of Carex oshimensis ‘Everest’, the Arabis caucasica ‘Variegata’, Euonymus ‘Emerald Gaiety’, and the euphorbia ‘Tasmanian Tiger’.
The splendid white-edged foliage of Euphorbia marginata
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