(Crown-of-Thorns)

This thorny plant has some of the showiest flowers of all the Euphorbias. A native of Madagascar, crown-of-thorns is a tropical, succulent shrub that stays evergreen year-round where hardy. From spring to late summer it produces many flowers with two showy bracts that are most typically scarlet red. Cultivars with orange, pink, white or creamy yellow bracts are also available.

Highly drought tolerant, this tough tropical requires full sun and can tolerate average to poor soil with good drainage....

(Crown-of-Thorns, Pretty Pink Crown-of-Thorns)

This thorny plant has some of the showiest flowers of all the Euphorbias. A native of Madagascar, crown-of-thorns is a tropical, succulent shrub that stays evergreen year-round where hardy. From spring to late summer it produces many flowers with two showy bracts that are most typically scarlet red. Cultivars with orange, pink, white or creamy yellow bracts are also available.

Highly drought tolerant, this tough tropical requires full sun and can tolerate average to poor soil with good drainage....

(Crown-of-Thorns)

This thorny plant has some of the showiest flowers of all the Euphorbias. A native of Madagascar, crown-of-thorns is a tropical, succulent shrub that stays evergreen year-round where hardy. From spring to late summer it produces many flowers with two showy bracts that are most typically scarlet red. Cultivars with orange, pink, white or creamy yellow bracts are also available.

Highly drought tolerant, this tough tropical requires full sun and can tolerate average to poor soil with good drainage....

(Candelabra Spurge, Lucky Cowboy, Tiger Tree)

With lots of spines and coarse branching, the candelabra spurge is both visually striking and intimidating in an arid garden. This rather fast-growing, short succulent plant is native to the subtropical coast of South Africa. It's frost sensitive. Very healthy, robust plants are many-stemmed and create a wide clump that looks like underwater coral tubes.

Instead of having leaves, the candelabra spurge conserves moisture in milky sap in its colorful stems. Each stark, upright stem is green with...

(Giant Hybrid Crown-of-Thorns, Thai Crown-of-Thorns)

Large flowers, compact habit and wicked thorns describe this hybrid crown-of-thorns. It is a cross between crown-of-thorns Euphorbia milii and white crown of thorns Euphorbia lophogona both from Madagascar and usually marketed as Supergrandiflora hybrids. The branches are gray to brown, covered with conical thorns and tipped with oblong, evergreen leaves. The flowers are grouped on long stalks at the ends of the branches and have two very showy bracts or modified leaves. The flower...

(Korean Sweetheart Tree)

Once the vivid rose-red fruits split open to reveal the black seeds, the Korean or Japanese sweetheart tree is a delightful sight. A small deciduous tree, its smooth, pale gray bark looks like striped snake skin all across the branches in the rounded canopy. It's native to mountain valleys and open forests across the southeastern half of China, Korea and Japan.

In spring, the compound leaves emerge glossy and light green. Each leaf comprises five to nine pointy ovals with scalloped edges. Crush...

(Lisianthus)

Lisianthus, grown for lovely flowers, is a native of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is a biennial, but often grown as an annual. The gray-green, clasping leaves are oval to oblong and opposite on erect, branching stems. Flowers are cup to bell shaped and borne in the upper leaf axils (the joint between the leaves and stems) during the summer. Color of the flowers may be white, pink, blue-violet or lavender with a dark center. The fruit is an elliptical capsule bearing many...

(Lisianthus)

Pretty pale yellow single flowers on long thick stems are found on Lisianthus ‘Cadence Yellow.’ Though developed for the cutflower industry, this selection will do well in the garden. The plants branch freely from the base and produce flowers spring through summer in small sprays.

Grown for lovely flowers, Lisianthus is a native of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is a biennial, but often grown as an annual. The gray-green, clasping leaves are oval to oblong and opposite...

(Florida Blue Lisianthus, Lisianthus)

Lisianthus ‘Florida Blue’ is a semi-dwarf selection grown for lovely flowers good for beds and cutting. Eustoma is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is a biennial, but often grown as an annual. The gray-green, clasping leaves are oval to oblong and opposite on erect, branching stems. Flowers are cup to bell shaped and borne in the upper leaf axils (the joint between the leaves and stems) during the summer. The color of the flowers is deep blue-violet with a...

(Lisianthus)

Lisianthus, grown for lovely flowers, is a native of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is a biennial, but often grown as an annual. The gray-green, clasping leaves are oval to oblong and opposite on erect, branching stems. Flowers are cup to bell shaped and borne in the upper leaf axils (the joint between the leaves and stems) during the summer. The color of 'Forever Blue' flowers is blue to lavender with a dark center. The fruit is an elliptical capsule bearing many dust-like...