E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Euphorbia esula L.
leafy spurge
Euphorbiaceae (Spurge family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Euphorbia esula
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Species Information

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Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

General:
Perennial herb from a heavy rhizome; stems erect, simple below but freely branching and umbrella-shaped above, glabrous to sparsely hairy above, with milky juice, 20-90 cm tall.

Leaves:
Stem leaves alternate, oblong to linear-oblanceolate, entire, glabrous, 2-6 cm long, 3-8 mm wide, lowest leaves almost unstalked; floral leaves in pairs, widely oval to heart-shaped, 12-16 mm long.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of many-rayed umbrella-shaped clusters; floral bracts cup-shaped, green; involucres 2-3 mm long; glands 4, brownish-green with short horns.

Fruits:
Capsules, inconspicuously warty to nearly glabrous; seeds 1.5-2 mm long, brownish, glabrous.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Dry roadsides, fields and waste places in the steppe and montane zones; frequent in SC BC, less frequent in SE BC; introduced from Eurasia.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Euphorbia esula

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information	Value / Class
Site Information	Minimum	Average	Maximum
Elevation (metres)	296	809	1035
Slope Gradient (%)	0	24	65
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]	180	210	260
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	1	3	5
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	D
Number of field plots species was recorded in:	4
Modal BEC Zone Class	IDF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in:	BG(1), IDF(3)
Source: Klinkenberg 2020

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Exotic	SNA	Exotic	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer, the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Euphorbia virgata

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the World Flora Online
Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer
USDA

Additional Photo Sources

UBC Herbarium Scanned Collection Record
Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2020. E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 2024-05-11 10:07:24 PM ]

Disclaimer: The information contained in the E-Flora atlas pages is derived from expert sources as cited in each section. This information is scientifically based. E-Flora also acts as a portal to other sites via deep links. As always, users should refer to the original sources for complete information. E-Flora BC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the original information.