By Sharon Cohoon, Sunset senior garden writer

Frankly, Tom Jesch, the owner of Daylily Hill Nursery in Bonsall, California, had me sold on Euphorbia mauritanica the minute he uttered the "E" word.  I heard Euphorbia and knew I was going to love this plant even more in a couple of years than I did at first sight, because that's been the case with every Euphorbia I've purchased, and I already had a trio of plants in my cart and my credit card in my hand, before he finished extolling the plant's copious virtues.

But, for those of you not so easily sold, here's what Jesch said:  "'Euphorbia mauritanica grows with a beautiful radiant symmetry shaped by its lime-colored stems, which form buds at the tips starting in early wiinter.  Shortly thereafter, the entire succulent shrub explodes into a canopy of tiny yellow/chartreuse flowers that continue through mid-spring."  This little shrub grows to about 2-1/2 feet tall and about 3 feet wide, he says, and is cold hardy down into the low 20s.  It is extremely drought-tolerant, says Jesch, and can live on rainfall alone once established, at least along the coastal plain.  The plant is much like E. rigida, he says, but it has prettier, more compact habit which makes it more appealing pre- and post-flowering.

Daylily Hill Nursery is a fun place to shop, incidentally -- it's like a little visit to the country -- as the photo of it below might suggest.  But, if Bonsall is too far for you to drive, you can call the nursery and see if there is a nursery closer to you they deliver to or you can mail order from their website.

photo courtesy of Daylily Hill Nursery