Euphorbia dendroides

A striking shrub with a sculptural, tree-like form and vivid spring display. Its blue-green foliage shifts to gold in summer, set against bold yellow bracts that bring architectural character and seasonal drama.

Euphorbia dendroides is a magnificent native Mediterranean shrub, common on the limestone cliffs and coastal hillsides of Greece, Sicily, Sardinia and Spain. It has an unusual reverse-season cycle perfectly adapted to Mediterranean summers: it grows and flowers from autumn through spring, then drops its leaves and goes completely dormant during the dry summer, becoming a leafless silvery-grey skeleton from June until autumn rains. Bright greenish-yellow flower heads appear in late winter to early spring — January to April — covering the whole shrub. Hardy to -5°C, exceptionally drought-tolerant, the plant requires sharp drainage and full sun; like all Euphorbias, the white sap is severely irritating.

Tree spurge forms a perfectly symmetrical rounded dome 1.5–2 m tall and as wide, with branches radiating from the base in a fountain pattern. It is one of the most architectural and authentically Mediterranean shrubs available, particularly suited to dry rocky slopes, coastal gardens, contemporary planting compositions and gravel beds where its summer dormancy is acceptable. Plant against dark backgrounds — dark stone, charcoal walls, evergreen Pistacia lentiscus or Quercus ilex — so the silvery winter form and chartreuse spring flowers register strongly. Companion with Cistus, Phlomis fruticosa, Helichrysum italicum, Lavandula stoechas and Salvia rosmarinus for an authentic Mediterranean shrubland composition. Allow space — the symmetrical form must not be crowded.