Flora of North America species comparison

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Croton humilis

Croton lindheimeri

low croton, pepperbush, salvia

goatweed, Lindheimer's hogwort, woolly croton
Habit Shrubs, 3–8 dm, monoecious. Herbs, annual, 5–20 dm, monoecious, stems, leaves, and buds with yellow-brown (ochraceous) pubescence when young, becoming glabrate.
Stems

much branched, stellate-hairy, viscid.

branching distally, stellate-hairy.
Leaves

not clustered;

stipules 2–5 stipitate glands, to 0.5 mm;

petiole 0.7–3(–5) cm, 3/8–5/8 leaf blade length, glands absent at apex;

blade ovate to oblong, 1.5–8 × 1–2(–5) cm, base rounded to subcordate, margins entire to minutely glandular-denticulate, apex abruptly acute to acuminate, both surfaces pale green, abaxial densely stellate-hairy, adaxial tomentose, glabrescent.

not clustered;

stipules linear, 0–5 mm;

petiole 1.5–7 cm, glands absent at apex;

blade ovate-lanceolate, 3–7 × 1–3 cm, base cordate to rounded or subcordate, margins entire, apex acute, abaxial surface pale green, not appearing brown-dotted, no stellate hairs with brown centers, densely stellate-hairy, adaxial surface greener, more sparsely hairy.
Inflorescences

bisexual or unisexual, racemes, 3–7 cm, staminate flowers 20–35, pistillate flowers 2–6.

bisexual, racemes, 1.5–3 cm, staminate flowers 8–15, pistillate flowers 2–7.
Pedicels

staminate 3–4 mm, pistillate 1–2(–3) mm.

staminate 0.5–3 mm, pistillate 0–1 mm.
Staminate flowers

sepals 5, 3–4 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

petals 5, spatulate, 3–4 mm, abaxial surface glabrous except margins ciliate basally;

stamens 15–35.

sepals (4–)5, 1.5–2 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

petals 5, linear-oblong, 1–1.5 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

stamens 9–13.
Pistillate flowers

sepals 5, equal, 4 mm, margins entire, sessile- or shortly stipitate-glandular, apex incurved, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

petals 0 or 5, white, subulate, 1 mm;

ovary 3-locular;

styles 3, 3–5 mm, 4-fid, terminal segments 12.

sepals 7–8, equal, 5–7 mm, margins entire, apex straight to slightly incurved, abaxial surface yellowish woolly-tomentose;

petals 0;

ovary 3-locular;

styles 3, 3–4 mm, 2 times 2-fid, terminal segments 12.
Capsules

4–5 × 4 mm, smooth;

columella apex with 3 rounded, inflated lobes.

6–8 × 8–9 mm, smooth;

columella tipped with 3-pronged grappling hooklike appendage.
Seeds

3–4 × 2.5–3 mm, shiny.

4–5 × 4–4.5 mm, shiny.
2n

= 20.

= 20.

Croton humilis

Croton lindheimeri
Phenology Flowering year-round. Flowering May–Dec.
Habitat Hammocks, thickets, disturbed areas. Old pastures, forest openings, bottomlands, fence rows, disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–50 m. (0–200 ft.) 0–300 m. (0–1000 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
FL; TX; e Mexico; se Mexico; West Indies
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; GA; LA; MO; MS; SC; TN; TX
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Croton humilis is a mainly West Indian species extending from southernmost Florida (Collier and Monroe counties) to the Bahamas, Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico, and up the Caribbean coast of Mexico to southernmost Texas (Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, Willacy, and Zapata counties). Texas plants have more stamens (30–35) than Florida plants (15–20).

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

Croton lindheimeri is very similar to C. capitatus, and the two can sometimes be found growing together in northeastern Texas. Croton lindheimeri can be distinguished by its more ochraceous pubescence on young growth, consistently acute leaf tips, somewhat more elongated pistillate part of the raceme, and pistillate sepal tips that do not recurve after anthesis. Croton lindheimeri was reported from Indiana, adventive on ballast in 1898, and from Kansas based on a single 1883 collection from Miami County, but apparently did not become established in either state.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 217. FNA vol. 12, p. 218.
Parent taxa Euphorbiaceae > Croton Euphorbiaceae > Croton
Sibling taxa
C. alabamensis, C. argenteus, C. argyranthemus, C. californicus, C. capitatus, C. ciliatoglandulifer, C. cortesianus, C. coryi, C. dioicus, C. elliottii, C. fruticulosus, C. glandulosus, C. heptalon, C. incanus, C. leucophyllus, C. lindheimeri, C. lindheimerianus, C. linearis, C. michauxii, C. monanthogynus, C. parksii, C. pottsii, C. punctatus, C. sancti-lazari, C. setigerus, C. soliman, C. sonorae, C. suaveolens, C. texensis, C. wigginsii
C. alabamensis, C. argenteus, C. argyranthemus, C. californicus, C. capitatus, C. ciliatoglandulifer, C. cortesianus, C. coryi, C. dioicus, C. elliottii, C. fruticulosus, C. glandulosus, C. heptalon, C. humilis, C. incanus, C. leucophyllus, C. lindheimerianus, C. linearis, C. michauxii, C. monanthogynus, C. parksii, C. pottsii, C. punctatus, C. sancti-lazari, C. setigerus, C. soliman, C. sonorae, C. suaveolens, C. texensis, C. wigginsii
Synonyms C. berlandieri Pilinophytum lindheimeri, C. capitatus var. lindheimeri
Name authority Linnaeus: Syst. Nat. ed. 10, 2: 1276. (1759) — (as humile) (Engelmann & A. Gray) Alph. Wood: Class-book Bot. ed. s.n.(b), 631. (1861)
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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