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programs
Invasive Plant Guide: Leafy Spurge
Euphorbia esula
Leafy Spurge Flower
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Identifying characteristics
- Stems: erect, glabrous or hairy, when broken exude a milky
latex
- Leaves: linear to narrowly oblanceolate, alternate, 3
inches long, 1/4 inch wide, tips acute or rounded, margins smooth
- Flower color: green to geenish-yellow
- Bracts: yellow-green
- Flowers: June to September
- Plant height: 1-3 feet
- Growth habit: perennial
Leafy Spurge Plant
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Toxicity
All spurges exude a milky white latex. This latex can cause
severe skin reactions. When handling leafy spurge, it is
recommended to wear gloves and long sleeves and to avoid touching
eyes after contact.Occurrence
Leafy spurge can survive under a wide range of unfavorable
plant conditions. However it spreads most rapidly in areas where
cattle or other grass-preferring animals remove competing plants,
permitting leafy spurge to take over by utilizing the advantages
of shooting seeds and invading roots.The leading edge of the
Klamath River leafy spurge population is identified just down river
of Orleans at the Ullathorne River Access. There are large
infestations present on the Scott River and on the Klamath, upriver
of Happy Camp.
Notes
Plants can send rhizomes (underground roots) up to 8'
underground, making this plant extremely difficult to control if
left untreated. Any part of the root that remains in the soil after
an attempted digging will sprout a new shoot that same year, or the
following year. A very hot plant on the California Department of
Food and Agriculture's Noxious Weed List. Siskiyou County
Agriculture is currently treating this plant with the herbicide
glyphosate on private property on the Klamath and Scott Rivers. More Info
- California Department of Food & Agriculture
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www.cdfa.ca.gov/phpps/ipc/weedinfo/euphorbia.htm
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