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beach tea, gulf croton, hierba de jabalí

goatweed, Lindheimer's hogwort, woolly croton

Habit Shrubs, 3–10 dm, monoecious or sometimes appearing dioecious. Herbs, annual, 5–20 dm, monoecious, stems, leaves, and buds with yellow-brown (ochraceous) pubescence when young, becoming glabrate.
Stems

trichotomously branching, stellate-hairy to stellate-lepidote.

branching distally, stellate-hairy.

Leaves

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.

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

unisexual or bisexual, racemes, 1–4 cm, staminate flowers 3–7, pistillate flowers 1–3.

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

Pedicels

staminate 2–4 mm, pistillate 0–1 mm.

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

Staminate flowers

sepals 5–6, 2.5 mm, abaxial surface stellate-lepidote;

petals 0;

stamens 10–13.

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, 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.

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

5–8 × 7–9 mm, smooth;

columella 3-winged.

6–8 × 8–9 mm, smooth;

columella tipped with 3-pronged grappling hooklike appendage.

Seeds

4.5–6 × 3.7–4.5 mm, dull.

4–5 × 4–4.5 mm, shiny.

2n

= 28.

= 20.

Croton punctatus

Croton lindheimeri

Phenology Flowering year-round. Flowering May–Dec.
Habitat Beaches, dunes. Old pastures, forest openings, bottomlands, fence rows, disturbed areas.
Elevation 0–20 m. (0–100 ft.) 0–300 m. (0–1000 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; SC; TX; e Mexico; Central America; West Indies; n South America
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; GA; LA; MO; MS; SC; TN; TX
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

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.)

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. 222. 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. humilis, C. incanus, C. leucophyllus, C. lindheimeri, C. lindheimerianus, C. linearis, C. michauxii, C. monanthogynus, C. parksii, C. pottsii, 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. disjunctiflorus, C. maritimus, C. plukenetii Pilinophytum lindheimeri, C. capitatus var. lindheimeri
Name authority Jacquin: Collectanea 1: 166. (1787) — (as puntatum) (Engelmann & A. Gray) Alph. Wood: Class-book Bot. ed. s.n.(b), 631. (1861)
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