Flat Spurge

Images ©:
©Harry Rose via flickr CC2.0, Harry Rose via flickr CC2.0

Euphorbia drummondii

Prostrate hairless matting plant. Pairs of oval blue-green leaves with reddish margins to 10 mm long with a rounded tip.

Details
Flora Type
Herbs
Former Scientific Name
Chamaesyce drummondii
Other Common Names
Caustic Weed
Distinctive Features

Minute inconspicuous flowers in a single cluster surrounded by bracts.

Biology

Perennial. Dry to heavy soils in grasslands, grassy woodlands, Lignum scrub and shrublands on rocky escarpments. Full sun. Wet conditions encourages a longer life cycle.

Native Status
Introduced
Flowering Time

Flowers most of the year.

Taxonomy
Phylum
Tracheophyta (Vascular Plants)
Class
Magnoliopsida (Flowering Plants)
Order
Malpighiales
Family
Euphorbiaceae
Genus
Euphorbia
Species
drummondii

Source: Atlas of Living Australia

The stems contain a milky sap that was used by Aboriginal people to treat snake bite, dysentery, genital diseases and wounds.

Interesting Facts
Native Status
Introduced