

For instance, when you think of the word "flower," you generally have a reasonably well-defined notion of what a typical flower looks like: sepals, petals, stamens and pistils, even if you don't know all the parts like a botanist. Here’s a plant that offers us something that looks like a flower…or is it?

Euphorbia corollata, also known as "Flowering spurge," is a common herb, found throughout the Southeastern states. It occurs as well into southern Canada and into the Midwest. It grows in a number of high-ground habitats, as it prefers dry feet: no swampy places for this little one.

The stems are slender, green, and leafy, usually not any more than about knee-high. The leaves alternate upward from the plant's base, and then commonly form whorls or rings toward the top. The stems and leaves contain a thin, whitish fluid which we term latex.

If a leaf is pulled off them, or if the stem is broken, one generally sees a drop of this latex oozing from the fresh wound. (This latex is potentially toxic, so the plants should not be chewed or ingested. Also, don’t get it on your skin, as it might be irritating.)

It blooms in late summer and into the fall. Technically, it produces both male (pollen-producing) and female (seed-producing) flowers, and these flowers are extremely reduced.

What appears to be a single flower is actually more than that. A green, cuplike structure has five prominent white lobes around the margins. The lobes, of course, look like they should be separate petals. Tiny male flowers, each consisting of a single stamen, line the interior of the cup. In the interior of the cup is an odd, bulbous thing that hangs out on a tiny stalk.

This is actually a highly reduced female flower, which bears no petals at all, and consists only of a pistil. Its swollen ovary will eventually produce a tiny capsule, with three seeds inside. The whole structure, including the cup, the lobes, the various male flowers and the female flower, is referred to as a peculiar little inflorescence called a cyathium.

So, the bottom line is that the small flower-like thing is not a flower. It’s a group of small flowers. A cyathium is found in no other kind of plant. So, if you see cyathia (plural) on a plant, it must be akin to our Mystery Plant.

You may never have seen our Mystery Plant at all, or at least not close up. However, you probably have seen one of its very close relatives, the well-known holiday poinsettia.

Sure enough, at your next Christmas get-together, look and see if there aren't some cyathia nestled amongst the bright red bracts. You'll be the hit of the party, sipping your cup of spiced punch, as you share this botanical story with all your friends.

John Nelson is 1982 graduate of FSU with a Ph.D. in biology. He is the curator of the A. C. Moore Herbarium at the University of South Carolina, which offers free plant identifications. Visit www.herbarium.org or call 803-777-8196.

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