Flora of North America species comparison

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Acalypha wilkesiana

Acalypha alopecuroidea

beefsteak plant, match-me-if-you-can, painted copperleaf, wilkes' acalypha

foxtail copperleaf
Habit Shrubs, 20–50 dm, monoecious. Herbs, annual, 2–6 dm, monoecious.
Stems

erect, sparsely to densely pubescent, not glandular.

erect, short-pubescent and stipitate-glandular.
Leaves

persistent;

petiole 1–6 cm;

blade ovate to broadly ovate or suborbiculate, 9–20 × 4–15 cm, base obtuse to rounded or subcordate, margins serrate-crenate, apex acuminate.

petiole 0.5–7 cm, stipitate-glandular;

blade ovate to broadly ovate, 2–8 × 1.5–5 cm, base rounded or subcordate, margins serrate, apex acuminate.
Inflorescences

usually unisexual, rarely bisexual, axillary;

staminate peduncle 0.1–1.5 cm, fertile portion 10–20 cm;

pistillate peduncle 1–2 cm, fertile portion 4–15 × 0.5–0.8 cm;

bisexual similar to staminate, with 1–2 pistillate bracts near base;

allomorphic pistillate flowers absent.

unisexual, axillary (staminate) and terminal (pistillate);

staminate peduncle 0.1–0.6 cm, stipitate-glandular, fertile portion 0.2–0.8 cm;

pistillate peduncle 0.2–1 cm, stipitate-glandular, fertile portion 2–6 × 0.8–1.5 cm;

allomorphic pistillate flowers common, terminal on pistillate or, rarely, staminate inflorescences.
Pedicels

of allomorphic flowers 5–15 mm.
Pistillate flowers

pistil 3-carpellate;

styles multifid or laciniate.

pistil 3-carpellate (normal flowers), 1(–2)-carpellate (allomorphic flowers);

styles unbranched or rarely 2-fid.
Capsules

unknown.

smooth, pubescent and stipitate-glandular or glabrate;

allomorphic fruits obovoid, 1–1.5 × 0.9–1.2 mm, muricate, hirsute.
Seeds

unknown.

1–1.1 mm, minutely pitted.
Pistillate

bracts loosely arranged (inflorescence axis visible between bracts), 2–4 × 3–5 mm, abaxial surface sparsely to moderately pubescent;

lobes 7–9, ovate to lanceolate, 1/4 bract length, except terminal lobe to 1/2 bract length.

bracts (normal flowers) crowded (inflorescence axis not visible between bracts), 8–12 × 3–4 mm, abaxial surface long-hirsute (hairs to 2 mm) and stipitate-glandular;

lobes 3–5, proximally deltate with linear tips, 3/4 bract length, smooth; of allomorphic flowers absent.

Acalypha wilkesiana

Acalypha alopecuroidea
Phenology Flowering spring–fall. Flowering and fruiting late summer–fall.
Habitat Old home sites, disturbed areas. Disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–10 m. (0–0 ft.) 0–40 m. (0–100 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
FL; Pacific Islands [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Mexico, West Indies, Central America, n South America, se Asia, Africa]
from FNA
AL; FL; LA; Mexico; Central America; West Indies; n South America [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Acalypha wilkesiana is not known in the wild, but presumably originated in the southwestern Pacific Islands (Bismarck Archipelago east to Fiji). The species is commonly cultivated as an ornamental for its leaves that may be various shades of green, purple, red, orange, and yellow (sometimes variegated), and sometimes contorted into unusual shapes. Despite low seed set, it occasionally becomes naturalized in tropical and subtropical areas. Naturalized plants often lack the distinctive leaf coloration found in cultivated plants. Although sometimes treated as A. amentacea subsp. wilkesiana, DNA sequence data show that A. wilkesiana and A. amentacea are distinct species (V. G. Sagun et al. 2010).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Acalypha alopecuroidea has been established in the United States since at least the 1950s.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 165. FNA vol. 12, p. 167.
Parent taxa Euphorbiaceae > Acalypha Euphorbiaceae > Acalypha
Sibling taxa
A. alopecuroidea, A. arvensis, A. australis, A. californica, A. chamaedrifolia, A. deamii, A. gracilens, A. monococca, A. monostachya, A. neomexicana, A. ostryifolia, A. phleoides, A. poiretii, A. radians, A. rhomboidea, A. setosa, A. virginica
A. arvensis, A. australis, A. californica, A. chamaedrifolia, A. deamii, A. gracilens, A. monococca, A. monostachya, A. neomexicana, A. ostryifolia, A. phleoides, A. poiretii, A. radians, A. rhomboidea, A. setosa, A. virginica, A. wilkesiana
Synonyms A. amentacea subsp. wilkesiana
Name authority Müller Arg.: in A. P. de Candolle and A. L. P. P. de Candolle, Prodr. 15(2): 817. (1866) Jacquin: Collectanea 3: 196. (1791)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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