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| This euphorbia (dulces chameleon) has been the source of many-a-question for me here but I like it so much I want to make sure I do everything right with this one! I did not cut back the plant/stems/leaves last fall/winter (per the advise of several very helpful GW posters). Well, now I can see new life starting to spring up out of the plant. Not very big or anything just yet but its starting. So my question now is this.... should I cut back the dead foliage now? The weather here is still a little... lets say inconsistent... weather man predicts highs this week anywhere from 40 to 72 and lows from 25 to 50.... That's MI for ya. I'm afraid to cut the dead stuff back and expose the new growth - I don't want the cold/frost/snow/whatever-else-we-may-end-up-getting to damage the new stuff. Is that a rational concern or is it best to just hack of last year's twigs and let mother nature do her thing? Same question applies to russian sage... Any advise is always appreciated! Thanks again |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by gardenweed_z6a N CT (My Page) on Mon, Apr 15, 13 at 8:05
| I've had euphorbia (E. polychroma) in my garden more than 20 years & even transplanted it from one garden to another when I moved. In my experience the plant requires virtually nothing in terms of maintenance--zip, zero, nada. It has thrived & performed with no help from me whatsoever which makes it (by my definition) a maintenance/care-free perennial. I planted several purple 'Bonfire' plants recently but haven't had sufficient time to comment on their behavior. I normally prune Russian sage back in the spring--cut the old stems back to about 4 inches altho' my perennials books say it isn't necessary. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Mon, Apr 15, 13 at 8:07
| say hey dave ... it doesnt matter what plant ... just track down into the plant.. and look for the lowest buds you can find ... you might need another week or two ... and then snip leaving only one or two buds ... this is how i think of it.. do you want 50 buds up a one foot stick.. sharing all the energy the roots make for such.. or would you prefer to focus all the energy.. on two prime buds... and as your experience grows.. you will find.. that two buds.. makes for a nice plant.. where as the former.. will tend to flop.. later in the season.. because of so much growth AT HEIGHT .... i dont buy this.. fall or spring pruning/cleaning debate.. you do it.. when you have time ... either is fine.. and in nature.. its never done .. and things simply dont die ... its more about how ugly they get.. and when ... have no fear.. just do it ... oh.. and BTW.. if you have more than one.. do one each way.. and check back in 60 days.. and make your own observation ... thats the key to me actually remembering what to do... my own experiments ... ken |
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| Thanks to you both! I have two euphorbias so I will experiment a little with them :) This is the first time I've see these plants (euphorbias) and I really like them... the cushion is bright greens and yellows and the chameleon, as its name suggests, went through several different colors. Very cool, in my opinion. Really interesting. I want to do right by them ha ha We'll see what "spring" may bring... I'm sure Ken, being in MI, knows what I mean ha ha ha |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Tue, Apr 16, 13 at 14:53
| Hold on!! You can't simply state: "it doesnt matter what plant ... just track down into the plant.. and look for the lowest buds you can find ... you might need another week or two ... and then snip leaving only one or two buds ... " It matters a great deal what the plant is as to how it it gets treated with regards to both the type of pruning/cutting back and the timing of it. Doing the wrong thing at the wrong time of year can have a measurable effect on both the flowering potential and even the longterm health of the plant. Euphorbias are an extremely diverse genus and hardy euphorbias have a pretty wide range of growth and flower habits. They are actually broken down into the three separate groupings - herbaceous or dying back to the root crown in winter (E. griffithii, dulcis, polychroma); evergreen subshrubs (E. characias, x martinii, robbiea) and semi-succulent (E. myrsinites, rigida). The herbaceous forms like 'Chameleon' may hold over foliage in mild winters but they should be cut back hard in early spring before new growth emerges. If present, the old growth will show signs of winter wear and will not produce any flowers. You can also shear back lightly after blooming to reduce unwanted self-seeding. The evergreen forms are left unpruned until after flowering in early to midspring. Then the old flower stems are cut back to the base - they will not produce any additional flowering and the foliage will eventually start looking ratty and die. New growth emerges from the base of the plant in spring as the flowers start to fade.These will produce next season's flowering stems. The semi-succulent forms are often evergreen as well in appropriate climates and these generally require minimal pruning, although the old flower bracts can (should) be removed to prevent unwanted seeding. You can cut back individual stems as desired if the foliage becomes disfigured. |
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- Posted by purpleinopp 8b AL (My Page) on Wed, Apr 17, 13 at 14:15
| Euphorbias have a reputation for causing contact dermatitis in individuals sensitive to the sap. |
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- Posted by socks12345 Zone 9 (My Page) on Fri, Apr 19, 13 at 11:13
| Big thank you to gardengal. I've been trying to figure out what to do with my first-time euphorbia which bloomed so beautifully this spring. Now I know to cut back the stems to the ground. They are drooping now, and I'll do it in a week or two.
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| Gardengal -- I have two here. I, too, wasn't sure how to prune them back. I know one is Tiny Tim, and can't remember the name of the yellowish one. The yellow one already bloomed and for the moment, I've just pruned them at the end of the blooms and left the foliage. Yikes -- should I have not? Purple, the sap flowing from this put my ficus to shame. I did get some on me though I had no reaction to it. It was hard to get off, though -- took about 3-4 hot water and soap washes and a lot of scrubbing. Grace |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Fri, Apr 19, 13 at 18:02
| Grace - 'Tiny Tim' is an x martinii hybrid. Should be fully evergreen for you and so flower stalks get cut back to base when the flowers fade (or you can't stand them any more!). New growth emerges periodically and the little guy will continue to push flowers as well. Not sure what the "yellow one" might be - 'Ascot Rainbow' perhaps? If so, same advice as above.....also an x martinii. Euphorbia sap - actually a type of latex - can really gum up a set of pruners!! But it seems to come off OK with just soap and hot water. It has never bothered me personally and I had quite the collection of different euphorbias in my old garden. Euphorbs were one of my "collect every variety you can find" plants :-) I think the reactions to it vary widely from person to person. |
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| Thanks for all that info, gardengal! We should call you Euph-Queen! :-) I'll cut the other one down and wait for the two 'Tiny Tim' I have to finish its spectacular show before whomping them off too. Grace |
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- Posted by Bonniezone9 Santa Cruz Mtns (My Page) on Sun, Mar 2, 14 at 11:59
| I planted both Euphorbia Ascot Rainbow and Euphorbia Blackbird early last spring and both (3 plants each) performed beautifully all spring and through the summer. I cut two of the Blackbirds close to the ground in late fall/early winter (they were leggy and looked terrible) and they haven't shown any new growth and my fear is that they may be dead? Should I have waited to cut them back until new basal growth emerged? Two of my Ascot Rainbows are leggy and do not show new growth at the base, so I am now paranoid to cut them back. Would love some advice! Thanks. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Sun, Mar 2, 14 at 14:09
| advice: patience ... its awful early.. to start worrying ... i would have waited.. or cut back to a bud ... i dont really know how you did yours.. w/o a pic you would be better off.. starting your own post .. ken |
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- Posted by gardengal48 PNW zone 8 (My Page) on Mon, Mar 3, 14 at 19:11
| Both of those varieties are fully evergreen in your climate so you should see foliage and perhaps even some signs of new growth. My Ascot Rainbow is beginning to set flower buds...... Compared to AR, Blackbird has not been proven to be a very robust or stable plant. They often don't last more than a single season and many local wholesale growers have simply stopped growing them. Too bad, as that dark wine red foliage is pretty stunning. I wouldn't hold out a lot of hope for that but the AR should come back strong. As in my previous post to this thread, these are best cut back to the ground - the old flowering stem that is - after the flowers fade in late spring/early summer. New growth from the base should be appearing by then and that should remain in place all through the season and into winter. |
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| Okay, when do I cut these back, and how far back? |
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