Weed Information: Acalypha virginica (copperleaf, Virginia)
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Acalypha virginica (copperleaf, Virginia)

Family: Euphorbiaceae

Description

Annual, with alternate leaves. The fruit three seeded and the flower spikes with male flowers near the tip and female flowers near the base. Very similar to Acalypha rhomboidea but the bracts of the female flowers usually with 10-14 rather than 7-9 lobes.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Green
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Axillary racemes
  • Axillary spikes
  • Terminal raceme
  • Terminal spike
Number of Petals
  • 0 (no petals)
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers regular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • < 1 mm (< .04 inch)
  • 1 mm (.04 inch)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
  • 4 mm (.16 inch)
  • 5 mm (.20 inch)
  • 6 mm (.24 inch)
  • 7 mm (.28 inch)
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • < 1 mm (< .04 inch)
  • 1 mm (.04 inch)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
  • 3 mm (.12 inch)
  • 4 mm (.16 inch)
  • 5 mm (.20 inch)
  • 6 mm (.24 inch)
  • 7 mm (.28 inch)
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
  • 1.5 cm (.60 inch)
  • 2.0 cm (.80 inch)
Number of Sepals
  • sepals lacking
  • 3 sepals
  • 4 sepals
  • 5 sepals
  • 6 sepals
  • 7 sepals
  • 8 sepals
  • 9 sepals
  • 10 sepals
  • more than 10 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • United from 25% - 75% length
  • United > 75% of length
Sepal Tip
  • Pointed
Flower Sex
  • Unisexual (monoecious or dioecious)
  • Bisexual (perfect)
Number of Styles
  • Styles lacking (male flowers only)
  • 3 styles
Number of Stamens
  • stamens lacking (female flowers only)
  • 1 stamen
  • 8 stamens
  • 9 stamens
  • 10 stamens
  • more than 10 stamens
Stamens Attached to the Petals
  • Stamens NOT attached to the petals
Stamens Connate (united)
  • Filaments or anthers NOT united
  • Filaments united, monodelphous

Carpel Separation
  • Carpels united (or one)
Number of Carpels
  • 0 (male flowers only or plants producing spores)
  • 3 carpels
Ovary Position
  • Superior (hypogynous)
Fruit Type
  • Capsule, 3-celled
Fruit Length at Maturity
  • 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 1 mm (.04 inch) or less
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Simple (including lobed leaves)
Stipules
  • Foliaceous < 2 mm (< .08 inch) long
  • Foliaceous 2-4 mm (.08 - .16 in) long
  • Lacking
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Arcuate
  • Pinnate
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole 25% - 75% total length
Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.60 inches)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.60 - 4.0 inches)
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
Leaf Width
  • 5 - 10 mm (.20 - .40 inch)
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.6 inches)
Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)
  • Deltoid (triangular)
  • Lanceolate
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Crenate
  • Entire
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Acute (cuneate)
  • Rounded
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Acuminate (attenuate)
  • Acute
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Hispid or setose
  • Sparsely hairy
Succulence
  • Not succulent

Milky Juice
  • Juice NOT milky (watery)
Woodiness
  • Herbaceous
Spines or Thorns
  • Spines or Thorns ABSENT
Aromatic (vegetative structures)
  • Not aromatic
Life Cycle
  • Annual
Growth Habit (while flowering)
  • Erect, columnar (narrow)
  • Erect, spherical (bushy)
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
  • 4 - 6 dm (1.3 - 2.0 feet)
Wind Dissemination
  • Not wind disseminated
Moisture Regime
  • Mesic
Chlorophyll
  • Present

Stem Cross Section
  • Round
Flowering Stem Leaves
  • Stem uniformly leafy
Main Stem Branches
  • Main stem branched

Root or Vegetative Propagule
  • Fibrous

US State
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Delaware
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Missouri
  • Mississippi
  • North Carolina
  • New Jersey
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • South Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Virginia
  • West Virginia
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Iowa
  • Oklahoma
  • South Dakota
  • Nebraska
Other
  • District of Columbia

  • Field Guide To The Common Weeds Of Kansas, 1983 (ISBN 0-7006-0233-X) See page: 69
  • How to Know the Weeds, 1972, (ISBN# 0-697-04880-2) See page: 49
  • Manual of Ohio Weeds, 1931 Ohio Ag. Exp. Station Bull. # 475, See page: 45
  • Representative Missouri Weeds and Their Control, 1941 Univ. of Missouri Ag. Exp Station Bulletin #433, See page: 111
  • S.W.S.S. Weed ID Guide, 1993 Section Number and Five letter code: 7 ACCVI
  • Weed Seeds of the Great Plains, 1993 University of Kansas# 92-125-B ISBN# 0-7006-0651-3 See index #: 117
  • Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 206
  • Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 114
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1956, Univ. of Delaware Field Manual #1 See species #: 197
  • Weeds of the Northeast, 1997 Cornell University ISBN# 0-8014-8334-4 See page: 222
  • Weeds of the South, University of Georgia 2009, ISBN#0-8203-3046-9 See page: 184
  • Weeds of the Southern United States, 1975, North Carolina Ag. Extension Circular #599 See page: 21
  • Weeds of the United States and Their Control, Lorenzi 1987, ISBN# 0-442-25884-4 See page: 192
  • Listed as a `Weed` by the Biota of North America Program, 2008 X
  • Listed in the WSSA Composite List of Weeds x
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