Spurge Glacier Blue

Spurge 'Glacier Blue' (Euphorbia characias 'Glacier Blue') is a compact evergreen perennial that holds a tidy 60cm dome of blue grey leaves edged in cream, every week of the year. Cream and green flower heads lift above the foliage from late winter into spring. Very few variegated plants take dry, poor, salty ground this well, which is what makes it useful in a coastal or gravel garden.

Why you'll love it

• Foliage colour that never stops. The blue and cream leaves carry the plant year round, so the display does not depend on a short flowering window.
• It stays where you put it. A neat 60cm by 60cm dome that keeps its shape without staking, clipping or dividing.
• It thrives on neglect. Drought tolerant, frost hardy, salt tolerant and content in poor soil, so a dry western bed suits it perfectly.
• Flowers when little else does. Lime green and cream heads open in late winter and hold for weeks, well before the spring garden gets going.

Where it works best

Borders and edging. Plant 50cm apart for mass planting or a continuous border. The blue grey tone sits well in front of dark green shrubs and against rendered walls.

Rockeries and gravel gardens. Sharp drainage is exactly what it wants, so a rockery pocket or a gravel bed gives better results than a rich, watered bed.

Coastal gardens and pots. Salt tolerance suits an exposed front garden, and a 400mm pot holds one plant well on a sunny balcony or courtyard.

Growing spurge 'Glacier Blue' in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun. It belongs in warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens, so Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra and coastal New South Wales all suit it. Humid tropical and subtropical summers are its limit, where it rots rather than grows.

Soil. Sharp drainage is not negotiable. Poor, sandy, gravelly or rocky ground is ideal. On clay, plant on a raised mound with coarse sand and grit through the backfill, because wet winter soil is what kills it.

Water and feed. Water weekly through the first summer, then almost never. It needs no fertiliser in reasonable soil, and rich feeding makes the growth soft and floppy.

Pruning. Cut spent flower stems right back to the base once they brown, which keeps the dome tight and encourages new shoots. Wear gloves and eye protection: the milky sap is a genuine skin and eye irritant.

What to expect when it arrives

It comes in two sizes: tube stock, and 140mm pots in packs of ten. Tubes are young single crowns and the value option for a long border or a mass planting, filling out over a season. The 140mm plants are further along and give a border that looks established sooner.

Plants travel upright and settle quickly. Expect a slow first month while the roots take hold, then steady growth through the cooler half of the year, since this is a Mediterranean plant that does much of its work in autumn and spring. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse other drought tolerant plants for a dry garden bed.
• See more salt tolerant plants for exposed coastal sites.
• Compare companions in the rockery plant range.
• Read variegated plants explained for keeping leaf markings strong.

Common questions

Is the sap dangerous?

The milky sap is a skin and eye irritant, so wear gloves and eye protection when cutting stems and wash any splashes off straight away. Keep children away while you prune.

How far apart should I plant it?

Space plants 50cm apart for mass planting or a continuous border. At that spacing the domes meet without crowding each other into soft, leggy growth.

Will it grow in a humid climate?

Not well. It is built for warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean conditions, and humid subtropical or tropical summers cause crown rot.