Common name: False Caper
Euphorbia terracina L. APNI*
Description: Erect or ascending woody herb to 80 cm high; stems simple or branched from the base and dividing into 3–5 fertile branches, each dichotomously divided up to 5 times, each fork and terminal cyathium subtended by a pair of leaves.
Stem leaves linear-lanceolate, 10–40 mm long, 2–8 mm wide, finely toothed, sessile; leaves of fertile branches ovate to triangular, c. 10–30 mm wide.
Cyathia on peduncles to 1 mm long, 1 or 2 in uppermost axils or 2 or 3 terminally; involucre c. 2.5 mm long, glands 4 or 5, greenish yellow, with 2 long slender horns. Male flowers 3 or 4 in each bundle.
Capsule 3–4 mm long, 4–5 mm diam., smooth; seeds c. 2.5 mm long, grey, caruncle to 1.5 mm long, yellowish white.
Flowering: mostly summer.
Distribution and occurrence: Suspected of causing HCN poisoning in stock. Native of Eur.
NSW subdivisions: *CWS, *NWP, *SWP, *NFWP, *SFWP
Other Australian states: *Vic. *W.A. *S.A.
Text by T. A. James & G. J. Harden Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 1 (1990)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data ***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
|