Croton monanthogynus |
Croton punctatus |
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one-seed croton, prairie tea |
beach tea, gulf croton, hierba de jabalí |
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Habit | Herbs, annual, 2–5 dm, monoecious. | Shrubs, 3–10 dm, monoecious or sometimes appearing dioecious. |
Stems | dichotomously branched from near base, stellate-hairy, some stellate hairs with dark brown centers. |
trichotomously branching, stellate-hairy to stellate-lepidote. |
Leaves | sometimes clustered near inflorescences; stipules glandlike, 0.1–0.3 mm; petiole 0.3–1.5 cm, glands absent at apex; blade ovate-oblong to nearly round (proximal) to narrowly elliptic (distal), 1–3.5 × 0.5–3 cm, base obtuse to rounded or truncate, margins entire, apex rounded to acute, abaxial surface pale green, sparsely whitish stellate-hairy and appearing brown-dotted, some hairs with dark brown centers, adaxial surface darker green, densely stellate-hairy, hairs without brown centers. |
not clustered; stipules absent; petiole 1–4 cm, 1/2 to equal blade length, glands absent at apex; blade broadly elliptic to suborbiculate, 2–5 × 1.5–4 cm, much less than 2 times as long as wide, base rounded to truncate, margins entire, apex obtuse to rounded, abaxial surface pale grayish green, stellate-lepidote, adaxial surface slightly darker green, stellate-lepidote. |
Inflorescences | bisexual or sometimes pistillate, congested racemes, 0.3–1 cm, staminate flowers 3–10, pistillate flowers 1–2(–5). |
unisexual or bisexual, racemes, 1–4 cm, staminate flowers 3–7, pistillate flowers 1–3. |
Pedicels | staminate 0.5–2 mm, pistillate 1–2.5 mm (2–3 mm and recurved in fruit). |
staminate 2–4 mm, pistillate 0–1 mm. |
Staminate flowers | sepals 3–5, 0.7–1 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy; petals 3–5, narrowly elliptic-oblanceolate, 0.7–1 mm, abaxial surface glabrous except margins villous; stamens 3–5. |
sepals 5–6, 2.5 mm, abaxial surface stellate-lepidote; petals 0; stamens 10–13. |
Pistillate flowers | sepals 5, subequal, 1.5–2 mm, margins entire, apex straight to slightly incurved, abaxial surface stellate-hairy, some hairs with dark brown centers; petals 0; ovary 2-locular, 1 fertile; styles 2, 0.8–1.2(–1.5) mm, 2-fid to base, terminal segments 4. |
sepals 5, equal, 3–3.5 mm, margins entire, apex incurved, abaxial surface stellate-lepidote; petals 0; ovary 3-locular; styles 3, 1–2 mm, multifid, terminal segments 12–24. |
Capsules | appearing follicular (1-seeded), 3.5–4.5 × 1.8–2.2 mm, smooth; columella ± curved, apparently deciduous upon dehiscence of capsule. |
5–8 × 7–9 mm, smooth; columella 3-winged. |
Seeds | 2.5–3.3 × 2–2.5 mm, shiny. |
4.5–6 × 3.7–4.5 mm, dull. |
2n | = 20. |
= 28. |
Croton monanthogynus |
Croton punctatus |
|
Phenology | Flowering May–Nov. | Flowering year-round. |
Habitat | Prairies, sandstone and limestone glades, thinly wooded bluffs, fallow fields, other disturbed habitats. | Beaches, dunes. |
Elevation | 0–1000 m. (0–3300 ft.) | 0–20 m. (0–100 ft.) |
Distribution |
AL; AR; AZ; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MD; MI; MO; MS; NC; NE; NM; OH; OK; PA; SC; TN; TX; VA; WI; WV; Mexico (Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas)
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AL; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; TX; e Mexico; Central America; West Indies; n South America
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Discussion | Croton monanthogynus may be adventive in the northernmost states. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
A report of Croton punctatus from Pennsylvania apparently was based on a transient appearance on ballast (E. T. Wherry et al. 1979). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 12, p. 220. | FNA vol. 12, p. 222. |
Parent taxa | Euphorbiaceae > Croton | Euphorbiaceae > Croton |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Engelmannia nuttalliana, Gynamblosis monanthogyna, Heptallon ellipticum, Oxydectes monanthogyna | C. disjunctiflorus, C. maritimus, C. plukenetii |
Name authority | Michaux: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 215. (1803) — (as monanthogynum) | Jacquin: Collectanea 1: 166. (1787) — (as puntatum) |
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