| California Croton |
| Croton californicus |
| Family: Euphorbiaceae (Spurge) |
| Flowers — color: white, size: 1/8", type: 5 petals |
California Croton is dioecious, two houses in GReek, having separate male or female plants. These produce male [stamens only] or female [pistils only] flowers. The blooms are 'inconspicuous', 1/8" or less, especially given the paleness of the foliage. The male flowers have five white sepals, zero petals, and five white extended stamens, although references claim that 10–15 is more likely. I'll look for a female flower, which should have five green sepals and three pistils.
Habit:
California Croton is a short-lived perennial or shrub. In some regions it may reach three feet high, but ours form a low spreading mat.
The basal stems become woody as they spread, branch, and overlap to form a circle several feet in diameter. Or they may reach out to escape the shadow of a taller neighbor. The pale green leaf is elliptic, having a narrow base and sharp or rounded end. A microscopic network of stellate (many items spreading from a common origin) white hairs on the leaf surface accentuates the paleness. Doveweed, in the same genus, has even hairier leaves but a different habit.
I find the pale foliage contrasts nicely with its chaparral neighbors. It loves sandy soils and open sunny areas. It has a wide distribution through our grasslands, coastal scrub, and oak woodland openings. California Croton is so tough it grows in the Mojave Desert!