One of the largest flowering-plant genera ( Euphorbia ), with more than 1,600 species.
It takes its common name from a group of annual herbs used as purgatives, or spurges. Many spurges are important as ornamentals or as sources of drugs; many others are weeds. One of the best-known is the poinsettia . Euphorbia is part of the family Euphorbiaceae, which contains about 7,500 species of flowering annual and perennial herbs and woody shrubs or trees in 275 genera; most are found in temperate and tropical regions. Flowers usually lack petals; those of Euphorbia are borne in cup-shaped clusters. The fruit is a capsule . Leaves are usually simple. The stems of many species contain a milky latex. In addition to Euphorbia , economically important family members include the castor-oil plant , croton , cassava , and rubber tree .
Spurge ( Euphorbia venata )
Valerie Finnis