Euphorbia davidii

(Toothed Spurge)

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Euphorbia davidii, Picture Canyon, Comanche National Grassland, Baca Co. 9473

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Euphorbia davidii, Picture Canyon, Comanche National Grassland, Baca Co. 9485

Scientific Name Euphorbia davidii (Euphorbia dentata) USDA PLANTS Symbol EUDA5
Common Name Toothed Spurge, David's Spurge ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. 565180
Family Euphorbiaceae (Spurge) SEINet
Reference
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Description Life zones and habitat: Plains to foothills (3400 to 6500 ft.); dry soils in grasslands, roadsides and disturbed areas
Plant: Annual 4 to 24 inches tall, with ascending branches; stems sparsely hairy with longer hairs near the inflorescence; milky sap.
Leaves: Mostly opposite and linear to ovate or elliptic to lanceolate 0.6 to 3.6 inches long and 0.2 to 1.4 inches wide with acuminate or obtuse tips and toothed edges; on petioles 0.25 to 1 inch long.
Inflorescence: Flower clusters are subtended by a crowded group of bracts resembling leaves with whitened bases; cyathia (the modified flowers in Euphorbiaceae) are clustered at branch tips; each cyathium has both pistillate and staminate flowers; a single, stalked female flower protrudes from the middle, lacking petals and producing the round fruit; there are 5 to 8 staminate flowers adjacent to the female parts, each a single very small stamen.
Bloom Period: June to September.
Fruit: Small 3-lobed, nearly spherical pods about 0.2-inch long. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield, Flora of North America, Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses and SEINet
BONAP Distribution Map

Map Color Key
Colorado Status:
Introduced

© Tom Lebsack 2024

Banner photo: Castilleja rhexifolia and a brewing storm over the San Juan Mountains