Chinese Caps: the 67th Flower of Spring & Summer!

Without question, this is the strangest looking wildflower I've seen on our property! When I took this picture, I originally thought it was Miner's Lettuce that was going to seed. I remember at the time that it seemed a little odd looking, but it was very small so I waited until I saw it on my computer to look closer. That's when I said outloud, "THAT'S NOT MINER'S LETTUCE!" But the question was, what the heck was it? After looking through my flower books, I found myself staring at a blossom called a Chinese Cap!

Chinese Caps are native to the western edge of North America and are commonly found in shady areas during the spring and early summer where it is cool. Being small and almost entirely green, it's not easily noticed unless carefully looked for. There are over 2,000 species in the "Euphorbia" genus, which are also referred to as "Spurges. I was surprised to find out that this plant is closely related to Poinsettias! Finally, the plants cause minor dermatitis and inflamation if touched and should be kept away from children and plant-munching pets! A very odd but cool-looking flower indeed, and one that I'm really happy to have discovered!

If you would like to know more about this type of "Spurges", Wiki has a great source of information here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphorbia