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Toothed Spurge Euphobiaceae,
the spurge family
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Background
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 Toothed
spurge is native to the Great Plains region. It spreads by seed and grows
under a wide range of environmental conditions. A milky latex exists in all
parts of the plant that can produce blisters and dermatitis in humans,
cattle, and horses and may cause permanent blindness if rubbed into the eye.
Protection is needed when handling toothed spurge.
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Description
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Toothed spurge is an annu al up to 3 feet tall. Leaves
are up to 3 inches long, ovate to
linear, coarsely toothed, mostly opposite,
hairy, and often dotted with a few purplish red spots. Stems are many
branched and generally curve up- wards. Both stems and leaves exude a milky
latex when broken. The inconspicuous flowers are borne in late summer,
followed by 3-sided, turban-shaped, l/4-inch, smooth, green fruits. Seeds
are rough, bumpy, oval, and gray.
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Distribution
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 Toothed
spurge is widely established from Massachusetts to Virginia and west to
Arizona, but only limited locations in Idaho have
been reported.
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Control
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No biological control agents are available for toothed spurge, but
herbicides are available to provide control. |
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© 1999 University of Idaho:
Text and photographs for these pages from Idaho's Noxious Weeds, by
Robert H. Callihan and Timothy W. Miller (revised by Don W. Morishita
and Larry W. Lass).
Please contact: Ag Publishing, University of Idaho, Moscow,
Idaho 83844-2240; 208 882-7982 visit the Resources for Idaho website at
http://info.ag.uidaho.edu, for more information about this or other
publications.
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