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Toothed Spurge

Euphorbia dentata

Found in bottomland forests, disturbed areas, hedgerows, thickets, railroad cinders. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 76%

Height
Up to about 2 feet
Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to moist

At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Bloom
July to October

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 34 Alabama counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 3

Forest edges and thickets

Wooded scene looking out over partially open fields
Named place / source context. Shown: Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, Georgia and Tennessee; which part is not recorded, a neighboring state.Wooded scene looking out over partially open fields, Richard Schlecht, undated. Public domain. Source record.

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

12CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Euphorbia

  • Automeris ioIo Moth
  • Episimus argutanaSumac Leaftier
  • Erinnyis alopeAlope Sphinx
  • Erinnyis obscuraObscure Sphinx
  • Eudryas unioPearly Wood-Nymph
  • Eutrapela clematariaCurved-Tooth Geometer, Purplish Brown Looper
  • Hypercompe scriboniaGiant Leopard Moth, Great Leopard Moth
  • Lobocleta plemyrariaStraight-Lined Wave
  • Melanochroia chephiseWhite-Tipped Black Moth, Snowbush Spanworm
  • Pygarctia abdominalisYellow-Edged Pygarctia
Show all 12
  • Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
  • Ethelgoda texanana
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
14BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Euphorbia

  • Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
  • Anthus spragueiiSprague's Pipit
  • Calcarius pictusSmith's Longspur
  • Callipepla gambeliiGambel's Quail
  • Cardinalis cardinalisNorthern Cardinal
  • Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
  • Corvus brachyrhynchosAmerican Crow
  • Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Pooecetes gramineusVesper Sparrow
Show all 14
  • Spizella breweriBrewer's Sparrow
  • Spizella pusillaField Sparrow
  • Tympanuchus pallidicinctusLesser Prairie-Chicken
  • Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Euphorbiaceae
Flower color
White or green

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Painted Leaf; Wild Poinsettia

Conservation status

Alabama rankSNR
Global rankG5
AL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources