Tropic Croton

Croton glandulosus L. — sand croton, tooth-leaved croton, vente conmigo, northern croton

Quick Facts

Scientific name	Croton glandulosus L.
Common names	Tropic croton, sand croton, tooth-leaved croton, vente conmigo, northern croton
Family	Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family
Plant type	Warm-season annual forb
Native status	Native to Oklahoma. Both Croton glandulosus var. septentrionalis and var. lindheimeri are recognized as native to Oklahoma, although many records are identified only to species.
Oklahoma range	Documented in western, central, northeastern, eastern, and southeastern Oklahoma; the complete county-level distribution is not consistently reported.
Oklahoma ecoregions	Not precisely documented at the EPA Level III scale; Oklahoma records cross several western, central, and eastern ecoregions.
USDA hardiness	Not consistently reported; it completes its life cycle as an annual.
Height / spread	Usually 4–24 inches tall; spread varies with branching and site conditions.
Bloom time	May–October, with most flowering during warm weather
Flower color	White
Sun	Full sun to light part shade
Soil	Sandy or sandy-loam soil; also occurs in dry, open loam and disturbed ground
Water needs	Low to medium; best adapted to dry or average, well-drained sites
Wildlife value	Birds eat and disperse the seeds. Broader records for native Croton species include use by doves, quail, turkey, songbirds, and small mammals; species-specific pollinator value is not well documented.
Edible / medicinal use	No reliably verified edible use. Medicinal use has been reported, but safety and preparation are not adequately established for home use.
Known hazards	UF/IFAS lists the plant as toxic to people, pets, and livestock. It can also reseed readily and become a crop or garden weed.

Summary

Tropic croton is a small native annual that commonly appears in sunny, dry, or recently disturbed soil. In Oklahoma it may turn up in prairies, pastures, roadsides, open woods, cultivated fields, lawns, and garden beds. Its toothed leaves, star-shaped hairs, and small white glands near the base of each leaf are its most useful identification features. The plant provides seed for birds, but it can also compete with crops and reseed where bare soil remains open. It is best treated according to location: scattered plants may be left in unmanaged wildlife areas, while plants in vegetable beds, crop rows, or livestock and pet areas are better removed before seed develops.

Identification

Leaves: Leaves are simple and usually alternate. Young leaves are round to oval, while mature leaves become oblong, lance-shaped, or elliptical. The margins are sharply toothed. Both leaf surfaces commonly have rough, star-shaped hairs. A small white, disc-like gland is usually visible on each side of the leaf stalk where it joins the stem. See photo below.
Stems: Stems are upright, branching mainly in the upper portion, and covered with short hairs. Older stems may become reddish brown.
Flowers: Small white male and female flowers occur on the same plant in narrow, unbranched clusters at the stem tips. Flowering generally occurs from late spring through autumn.
Fruit / seed: The fruit is a brown, three-celled capsule containing one to three seeds. Mature capsules can split and discharge the seeds away from the parent plant. Birds may then carry or disperse them farther.
Roots: A taproot.
Lookalikes: Eclipta has narrower leaves arranged opposite one another rather than alternately. Prickly sida can have a similar upright form, but it lacks the pair of white disc-like glands at the leaf base and is usually less densely hairy. Other Oklahoma crotons generally lack the combination of sharply toothed leaves, paired leaf glands, and star-shaped hairs.

Habitat and Range

Tropic croton grows in open sandy or loamy ground, prairies, shrublands, pastures, open woods, cultivated fields, roadsides, waste places, lawns, and other disturbed sites. It is an early-successional plant, meaning it often appears quickly where vegetation has been thinned and bare soil is exposed. The species is broadly native from the central and eastern United States through Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and parts of South America.

Oklahoma notes: Herbarium records and Oklahoma floristic surveys document the species across widely separated parts of the state, including western, central, northeastern, eastern, and southeastern Oklahoma. Two accepted varieties, var. septentrionalis and var. lindheimeri, are native to Oklahoma. These varieties can intergrade, and reliable identification below the species level may require mature leaves, glands, hairs, and seeds. For most garden and field observations, identification as Croton glandulosus is the more cautious choice.

Growing Conditions

Light: Best in full sun, although it can occur in lightly shaded open woods and woodland edges.
Soil: Most often associated with sandy or sandy-loam soil, but it also grows in ordinary loam, compacted ground, cultivated soil, and other well-drained disturbed sites. A dependable soil pH preference is not well documented.
Moisture: Dry to average. It may occur across a wider moisture range where competition from surrounding plants is limited.
Heat and drought: Well adapted to Oklahoma summer heat. As a warm-season annual, it germinates, flowers, and sets seed during the hotter part of the year.
Maintenance: It generally needs no irrigation, fertilizer, division, or pruning. Leave scattered plants alone where they are welcome. Pull or hoe unwanted plants before capsules mature, and maintain mulch or dense vegetation where repeated germination is a problem.

Ecology and Wildlife Value

Tropic croton is part of the early-successional plant community that occupies open or disturbed ground. Its seeds are eaten by birds and can be dispersed after the capsules open. Government wildlife information for the genus Croton lists doves, bobwhite quail, prairie chickens, wild turkey, several songbirds, and prairie pocket mice among the animals using croton seeds, although those records are not all specific to Croton glandulosus. White-tailed deer have also been reported browsing plants in the genus. The small flowers may be visited by insects, but dependable species-specific pollinator and host-plant records were not found. In cropland or intensively managed beds, its ecological value may be outweighed by competition and seed production.

Garden Use

Best use: A minor component of a naturalistic prairie, field edge, wildlife strip, or lightly managed dry area. It is not usually selected as a formal ornamental.
Works well with: Other sun-loving Oklahoma plants suited to dry, open soil, such as little bluestem, plains coreopsis, black-eyed Susan, annual sunflower, and native prairie grasses. These are suitable associates rather than documented biological companions.
Problems: It can reseed into bare soil, compete with crops and vegetables, and look weedy in a maintained planting. Toxicity concerns make it a poor choice for areas where pets or livestock may eat unfamiliar plants.
Recommendation: Observe before removing isolated plants in an unmanaged native area. Remove it before seed formation in vegetable beds, crop rows, formal gardens, and areas used closely by pets or livestock.

Propagation and Management

Tropic croton reproduces by seed. Mature capsules split and discharge seeds, and birds can contribute to further dispersal. Intentional propagation is rarely necessary; leaving mature plants in suitable open ground is usually enough to produce seedlings the following year.

Management notes: Because it is an annual, preventing seed production is the simplest nonchemical control. Pull or hoe young plants when soil is moist, remove fruiting plants from the site, and cover bare soil with mulch or competitive vegetation. Recheck disturbed ground during summer because new seedlings may appear after cultivation or rainfall. In agricultural settings, use current Oklahoma State University Extension guidance and the current pesticide label rather than relying on older out-of-state herbicide recommendations.

Uses and Cautions

Edible uses: No reliable edible use was found. Do not eat the plant.
Medicinal uses: Botanical databases report medicinal use somewhere within the species’ broad range, but dependable preparation, dosage, and safety guidance for Oklahoma use were not found. Historical or regional medicinal reporting should not be treated as proof of safety.
Other uses: Seed source for birds and a minor component of early-successional wildlife habitat. It may also provide temporary plant cover on disturbed soil.
Hazards: UF/IFAS lists the plant as toxic to people, pets, and livestock, while Arkansas Extension notes that cattle avoid it. Details on toxic compounds and harmful doses are not consistently reported in accessible sources. Avoid ingestion, remove it from high-use pet or livestock areas, and use gloves if handling unfamiliar spurges or if skin irritation occurs.

My Field Notes

Observed at: I typically see this plant along the edges of disturbed soil. It has appeared for several years around the pond I dug in 2023, and this year I also found it growing in my garden.

Date observed: July 2026

Notes: Some of the literature says that caterpillars will eat it, I have not first hand observed this however, ants are usually on the plant. The ants may be attracted to the extrafloral nectaries and might be defending the plant against other insects but no study has directly experimentally demonstrated this behavior.

Sources

Note: This profile is for gardening and natural-history reference only. Do not eat or use any plant medicinally without reliable identification and qualified guidance.