PlantFiles: Summer Poinsettia, Mexican Fire Plant
Euphorbia cyathophora

I absolutely love this plant. It is very showy when mature and the center is red.

i always find this plant growing by the dania beach here in south florida...it's seems weed like & very unique looking

Pretty much considered a weed here in South Florida. Interesting to know that it is poisonous to dogs and cats.

I have just discovered this plant in a clients garden in Asheville, NC. I have been designing & working in gardens for 10+ years here, and have never seen this plant. From research it seems as if Heterophylla and Cyathophora are very close. I am thinking the Heterophylla has the wider leaves which is what I have. ??? And the Cyathophora has the spiny leaves?? It seems to have been reseeding its self but not too dramatically.

It comes up year after year I never knew what it was until today. I thought it was very pertty weed. Its a nice plant and easy to grow.

Greg
zone 9

very invasive. more of a weed than a flower. no flowers, not showy. I've read in south america gets in soybeans and glycophosphate based herbicides doesn't kill it. I have pulled diligently and keeps springing up.

For the Southern most tip of Texas, where temperature gets up to 104F, this medium growth shrub with its unique shape and color is a pleasant weed. Alike most weeds, no care needed, watering not an issue and arrived on its own one day. Since I discovered it, I have been regularly caring for it as I do for my other plants and it LOVES it!!! Getting taller and fuller. Stately appearance. If one were to pot it and sell it at the nursery, it could be passed off as some exotic shrub!

This species is not as common as Euphorbia heterophylla which is also known as "Summer Poinsettia" (as are several varieties of Amaranthus, but those are easily distinguished from the Euphorbias.)

I planted this plants seeds only once, two years ago. Since then it has randomly sprung up in my garden in several different locations. It has grown well in full sun without any help from me.

I started with one plant five years ago and it is every where now.I give it away every year and everyone loves it. By the middle of august here in Ohio its at its best.It is a really pretty plant.

Everyone (meaning all my aunts) had these plants back in the 40's. I have been looking for it for a long time--didn't know the name of it. I used to see them growing wild, too.

I have seen this plant in central Florida, and thought it was related to the traditional Poinsettia, but it was growing like a weed. I have seen it a few times since, but always in weedy type situations, growing happily by itself. In addition to it being poisonous to people and dogs, it is also toxic to cats.

Be very careful with this plant, especially if you have dogs or children that may possibly eat it. The Mexican fire plant if ingested can cause vomiting, diarrhoea, shock and even death. The milky sap that the plant contains and that oozes out when a stem is broken can also irritate the skin. It is a lovely plant, and thrives in the Galapagos Islands and other areas of South America as well as south-eastern North American states. It is often mistaken that the red/green bracts are its flower petals, but the flowers are actually the small green cups that only have either stamens or pistils, no other reproductive whorls.

One of these plants appeared in my brother's garden and I really thought it was beautiful. But did not think it was in the poinsettia family. An older lady told us that it was practically a weed here in Georgia and invasive. But have lived here all my life and never noticed it before this summer. So it can't be that "weedy." I tried to root a cutting in soil and it rotted but was able to root readily a cutting in water.

A good filler plant but can be invasive. I planted it two years ago and still have it going strong in my garden. Easy to pull and get rid of unwanted plants.

This is one of my favorite plants. It looks good in the fall when most everything else is well past their prime.

Easy to grow plant, and the flowers are inconspicuous enough to fill in between other plants.

But - be aware of the force with which its seeds burst forth (meaning you'll find seedlings EVERYWHERE.)

Seeds should be collected when the husks take on a dry, pale green appearance. You can experiment by opening up one and seeing if the seeds are dark brown/black - if so, they're ripe and ready to pick. If they are still white and oozing sap, they're not ready.

Place the seed pods (each normally contains two or three seeds) in a jar or deep bowl with a lid. As they dry, the husks will come loose with a "POP", and without a lid, you'll find seeds all over the place :)

I haven't had much experience with this plant, as just this year I transplanted some from my mother's garden (Texas, zone 7) to mine (Georgia, zone 8). It appears to be thriving and Mom said that it will reseed itself gladly.

I just wanted to add that my grandmother called this plant a "hypocrite bush" because it resembled a poinsettia but wasn't really one. I finally tracked down its real name, and, lo and behold, it actually IS a close relative of the poinsettia. Not too much of a hypocrite after all.

I don't know how many others may have used that term. Of course, my grandmother also referred to purple heart as purple coleus and called moss rose (portulaca) just "moss".