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Chamaesyce maculata (L.) Small

Prostrate spurge, spotted sandmat, spotted spurge, milk purslane

ParentsUnknownGenus is not in the current taxonomy
GenusChamaesyceFrom ancient Greek chamai, “on the ground,” describing a type of prostrate plant
SpeciesmaculataFrom Latin maculatus, "spotted, blotched" (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)

About plant names...

These North American native plants are common weeds, found on roadsides, gravelly areas, atop mulch, and in other disturbed soils.

Identification: This common species apparently takes on multiple forms, judging from the surprisingly variable descriptions I have found so far. Some sources say it keeps a low profile, about 1″ (2.5 cm) high, lying flat on the ground, hence the "prostrate" and "sandmat" in two of its common names. This is the only form I have so far noticed. Newcomb's Wildflower Guide says it is "more or less erect with a stem up to 2½′ (76 cm) high." The article at missouriplants.com describes it as up to 12″ (30 cm) in height, "erect to ascending or reclining." Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast describes it as 1¾-4″ (5-10 cm) tall. Wildflowers in the Field and Forest says it is 4-36″ (10-91 cm) in height.

Stems are green, often pale to strong red in sunlight, heavily branched, with sparse tomentoulose hairs. They produce a milky latex when cut. The leaves are also variable. They are opposite, oval to linear and somewhat asymmetric, with one edge flatter than the other and fine serrations, ⅛-1″ (5-30 mm) long and about one third to one half as wide. Leaves often have an irregular dark reddish blotch near the center. Flowers are practically invisible at less than ⅛″ (3.2 mm) in size. They are cyathia with four "petals" that are white or light pink. Fruits are about 1/32″ (1 mm) in size.

Edibility: Poisonous Skull & Crossbones The milky sap may cause a mild contact dermatitis. Gloves are advisable when handling this plant.

This species is similar to several others, some shown below:

 

Chamaesyce maculata (prostrate spurge, spotted sandmat, spotted spurge, milk purslane)

6/29/2023 · West Vir­ginia

Chamaesyce maculata (prostrate spurge, spotted sandmat, spotted spurge, milk purslane)

8/11/2012 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm)

Chamaesyce maculata (prostrate spurge, spotted sandmat, spotted spurge, milk purslane)

8/7/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 6 × 4″ (16 × 10 cm) ID is uncertain

Chamaesyce maculata (prostrate spurge, spotted sandmat, spotted spurge, milk purslane)

8/7/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 12 × 8″ (31 × 21 cm) ID is uncertain

  You are here
Chamaesyce maculata

Chamaesyce vermiculata
Common Name

prostrate spurge

spotted spurge
Plant Sometimes prostrate, only 1″ (2.5 cm) high; sometimes up to 3′ (91 cm) in height. Stems are green or pale to strong red in sunlight, heavily branched, with sparse tomentoulose hairs. They produce a milky latex when cut. Sometimes prostrate, less than 1″ (2.5 cm) high; or up to 1′ (40 cm) high. Stems vary from green to reddish to dark red, and exude a milky sap when broken. They are hairy, with hairs that point out rather than being matted, ~1/32″ (0.5-1.5 mm) long.
Flowers Less than ⅛″ (3.2 mm) in size. They are cyathia with four "petals" that are white or light pink. Nearly imperceptible at less than ⅛″ (3.2 mm) in size. They are cyathia with four "petals" that are white or light pink, appearing from July to October.
Leaves Opposite, oval but somewhat asymmetric, with one edge flatter than the other and fine serrations, ⅛-1″ (5-30 mm) long and about one third to one half as wide. Leaves often have a dark reddish blotch near the center. Opposite, somewhat asymmetric, oval, ¼-¾″ (6.3-19 mm) long and one half to two thirds as wide, with widely spaced serrations, often with an irregular dark reddish blotch in the middle.
Fruit 1/32″ (1 mm) in size. Hairy. 1/32-1/16″ (1.5-2 mm) in size, hairless, with three lobes.
Range/ Zones

Habitats Disturbed soils, roadsides, gravelly areas, atop mulch, gardens, cracks in sidewalks Meadows, fields, roadsides, disturbed soils
Type Wild Wild
Occurrence Common Common

 

Online References:

Missouriplants.com

Luirig.altervista.org

Illinois Wildflowers

North Carolina State University's Mycological Herbarium (Chamaesyce maculata and C. prostrata)

Delawarewildflowers.org

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

References:

Hains, Arthur; Farnsworth, Elizabeth & Morrison, Gordon (illus.), Flora Novae Angliae: a Manual for the Identification of Native and Naturalizaed Higher Vascular Plants of New England, Yale University Press, 2011, p. 568

Newcomb, Lawrence, Morrison, Gordon (Illus.), Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide, Little, Brown and Company, 1977, p. 432

del Tredici, Peter, Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast: a Field Guide, Comstock Publishing Associates, a division of Cornell Universty Press, 2010, p. 212

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 344

Chamaesyce mathewsii Small

Chamaesyce supina (Raf.) H. Hara

Chamaesyce tracyi Small

Euphorbia maculata L.

Euphorbia rayturneri V.W. Steinm. & Jercinovic

Euphorbia supina Raf.

 

Chamaesyce maculata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 16 Sep 2020.

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Chamaesyce maculata (prostrate spurge, spotted sandmat, spotted spurge, milk purslane)

8/11/2012 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm)

Range:

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