Pruning Euphorbia amygdaloides Purpurea

Please can somebody advise me how to prune Euphorbia amygadaloides Purpurea? My RHS Pruning book advises on all other Euphorbias but not this one.

 

Hi Arroch and welcome. I don't know - I have only recently obtained a Euphorbia - griffithi 'Fireglow', but I don't know the genus. I couldn't find anything by Googling. However the closest I could get comes from "The cultivation of hardy perennials" by Richard Bird. He says :-

"Some of the E. amagloydes group such as 'Rubra' and the hybrid E.x martinii suffer from mildew. This can be treated with a fungicide but in the case of the former it usually occurs after the plant has had its moment of glory and when it is beginning to look tatty, so it can be cut down."

He also says of E. amagloydes "Removing the old flower stems helps prolong the life of plants, thus preventing bald patches [within the plant]".

The implication is that you cut it back after flowering.

 

Hello Arroch - the late Christopher Lloyd's bookof Garden Flowers talks about E. Amygloides and says it used to be called E. Robbiae. A spreading 'spurge' which becomes weak at the centre as it 'suckers'. He also says that cutting it back in August helps to sustain a healthy plant.