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Euphorbia marginata

Common name:	Mountain Snow	Family:	Euphorbiaceae
Author:	Pursh.	Botanical references:	60, 200, 228
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	The sap contains a latex which is toxic on ingestion and highly irritant externally, causing photosensitive skin reactions and severe inflammation, especially on contact with eyes or open cuts. The toxicity can remain high even in dried plant material[200]. Prolonged and regular contact with the sap is inadvisable because of its carcinogenic nature[214].
Range:	Central N. America. A garden escape in S.E. Europe.
Habitat:	Infrequent to locally abundant, the plant has a liking for calcareous soils of prairies, roadsides, pastures and waste places[228].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Agaloma marginata[B,P] Dichrophyllum marginatum[B,P] E. variegata[G,H] Lepadena marginata[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Ghostweed [H], Mountain Snow [H], Snow On The Mountain [H,P], Snow-on-the-Mountain [L], Snow-on-the-mountain [B],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	marginata = margined;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Euphorbiales. Spurge family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Us(Kiowa)
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: USA Invasive.

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 0.6m by 0.3m . It is hardy to zone 4. It is in flower in September. The flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Gum.

A latex from the plant is used for chewing[61, 177, 257]. Caution is advised, see the notes on toxicity above.

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Astringent; Galactogogue; Salve; Women's complaints.

Astringent, women's complaints. Used in the treatment of leucorrhoea[4].
An infusion of the crushed leaves has been used as a liniment in the treatment of swellings[257].
An infusion of the plant has been used to increase milk flow in nursing mothers[257].
Any medicinal use of this plant should be carried out with great care, see the notes above on toxicity[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Prefers a light well-drained moderately rich loam in an open position[200]. Succeeds in dry soils[1].
A very ornamental plant, its long-lasting flowers are used in button holes[1].
Hybridizes with other members of this genus[200]. The ripe seed is released explosively from the seed capsules[200].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer or rabbits[233].
This genus has been singled out as a potential source of latex (for making rubber) for the temperate zone, although no individual species has been singled out[141].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in situ. Germination usually takes place within 2 - 3 weeks at 20°c.

Suppliers

Plants For A Future is working with the following groups to try and make these plants easily available. Parts of the proceeds will be donated to so please mention us when ordering.

Wildwood Nurseries: Lower Manor Cottage
Thornbury
Holsworthy
Devon
EX22 7DD
Email: lorna@macace.co.uk
Phone 01409 261324 Fax 01409 261324
Distribution: UK
How to order: Direct from Wildwood by email/phone
Last Updated: March 03
Item: Euphorbia amygdaloides (wood spurge)

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Euphorbiaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[141] Carruthers. S. P. (Editor) Alternative Enterprises for Agriculture in the UK. Centre for Agricultural Strategy, Univ. of Reading 1986 ISBN 0704909820
Some suggested alternative commercial crops for Britain. Readable. Produced by a University study group.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[214] Matthews. V. The New Plantsman. Volume 1, 1994. Royal Horticultural Society 1994 ISBN 1352-4186
A quarterly magazine, it has articles on Himalayacalamus hookerianus, hardy Euphorbias and an excellent article on Hippophae spp.

[228] McGregor. R. L. & Barkley. T. M. Flora of the Great Plains. University Press of Kansas. 1986 ISBN 070060295x
A useful source of habitats.

[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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