Weed Information: Croton capitatus (croton, wooly)
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Croton capitatus (croton, wooly)

Family: Euphorbiaceae

Description

The `wooly` hairs of this plant, when seen under magnification, are actually star shaped. The flowers are borne in dense, terminal clusters, about an inch long. These plants are generally found in dry, open sites.

Characteristics

Flower Color
  • Green
Inflorescence Type (How the flowers are arranged on the plant)
  • Terminal raceme
  • Terminal spike
Number of Petals
  • 0 (no petals)
  • 5 petals
Petal Separation
  • Completely free to base
Petal Tip
  • Rounded
Flower Symmetry
  • Flowers regular
Flower Length (Head length in the Asteraceae)
  • 1 mm (.04 inch)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
Flower Width (Head width in the Asteraceae)
  • 1 mm (.04 inch)
  • 2 mm (.08 inch)
Number of Sepals
  • 5 sepals
Sepal Separation
  • Completely free to base
  • United at base < 25% length
Sepal Tip
  • Pointed
  • Rounded
Flower Sex
  • Unisexual (monoecious or dioecious)
Number of Styles
  • Styles lacking (male flowers only)
  • 3 styles
Number of Stamens
  • stamens lacking (female flowers only)
  • 7 stamens
  • 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

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
  • 6 mm (.24 inch)
  • 7 mm (.28 inch)
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
Fruit Width at Maturity
  • 6 mm (.24 inch)
  • 7 mm (.28 inch)
  • 8 mm (.32 inch)
  • 9 mm (.36 inch)
  • 1.0 cm (.40 inch)
Burs
  • Fruit or seed NOT bur-like

Leaf Arrangement
  • Alternate
Leaf Type
  • Simple (including lobed leaves)
Stipules
  • Foliaceous < 2 mm (< .08 inch) long
  • Lacking
Tendrils
  • Tendrils absent
Venation
  • Pinnate
Petiole (leaf stem) Blade Ratio
  • Petiole 25% - 75% total length
  • Petiole > 75% total length
Leaf Length (blade PLUS petiole)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.60 - 4.0 inches)
  • 1 - 2 dm (4.0 - 8.0 inches)
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
Leaf Width
  • 1 - 2 cm (.40 - .80 inch)
  • 2 - 4 cm (.80 - 1.6 inches)
  • 4 - 10 cm (1.6 - 4.0 inches)
Leaf Shape (simple leaves only)
  • Elliptic
  • Lanceolate
  • Oblong
  • Ovate
Leaf or Leaflet Margin
  • Entire
  • Undulate (sinuate, repand)
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Base
  • Cordate
  • Rounded
Leaf or Leaflet Tip
  • Acuminate (attenuate)
  • Acute
  • Rounded (obtuse)
Leaf or Leaflet Blade Surface
  • Stellate (star shaped)
  • Tomentose
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)
Plant Height at Maturity
  • 2 - 4 dm (8.0 - 16.0 inches)
  • 4 - 6 dm (1.3 - 2.0 feet)
  • 6 - 8 dm (2.0 - 2.6 feet)
  • 8 - 10 dm (2.6 - 3.3 feet)
Wind Dissemination
  • Not wind disseminated
Moisture Regime
  • Mesic
Chlorophyll
  • Present

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

Root or Vegetative Propagule
  • Tap Root

US State
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Kansas
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Massachusetts
  • Missouri
  • Mississippi
  • North Carolina
  • New Jersey
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • South Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Texas
  • Virginia
  • West Virginia
  • Indiana
  • Maryland
  • Iowa
  • Oklahoma
  • South Dakota
  • Nebraska
Other
  • District of Columbia
Canadian Province or Territory
  • Ontario

  • Common Weeds of the United States, 1971 (ISBN 0-486-20504-5) See page: 244
  • Field Guide To The Common Weeds Of Kansas, 1983 (ISBN 0-7006-0233-X) See page: 70
  • More Turfgrass and Related Weeds: Beyond the Color Atlas, 2011 Clemson University Publishing ISBN# 978-0-9798777-5-9 See Page: 231
  • Representative Missouri Weeds and Their Control, 1941 Univ. of Missouri Ag. Exp Station Bulletin #433, See page: 113
  • S.W.S.S. Weed ID Guide, 1993 Section Number and Five letter code: 7 CVNCP
  • Weed Seeds of the Great Plains, 1993 University of Kansas# 92-125-B ISBN# 0-7006-0651-3 See index #: 118
  • Weeds, 1955 (1980) Walter Conrad Muenscher, ISBN# 0-8014-1266-8 See page: 297
  • Weeds, A Golden Guide, 1972 ISBN#0-307-24353-2 See page: 78
  • Weeds of Arkansas 1981 (MP 169-5M-3-81) See page: 25
  • Weeds of the Midwestern United States & Central Canada, University of Georgia 2010, ISBN#0-8203-3506-1 See page: 210
  • Weeds of the North Central States, 1981 Univ. of Illinois, Urbana - Champaign Bulletin # 772, See page: 115
  • Weeds of the South, University of Georgia 2009, ISBN#0-8203-3046-9 See page: 190
  • 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: 193
  • 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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