''Euphorbia purpurea'' is a species of ''

Euphorbia ''Euphorbia'' is a very large and diverse genus of flowering plants, commonly called spurge, in the family Euphorbiaceae. "Euphorbia" is sometimes used in ordinary English to collectively refer to all members of Euphorbiaceae (in deference to t ...

'' known by the common names Darlington's glade spurge, glade spurge, and purple spurge. It is native to the

Eastern United States The Eastern United States, commonly referred to as the American East, Eastern America, or simply the East, is the region of the United States to the east of the Mississippi River. In some cases the term may refer to a smaller area or the East C ...

, where it occurs from

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

south to

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. It has been

extirpated Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...

from

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

; it was believed lost from

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

until a population was rediscovered in 1997.''Euphorbia purpurea''.
The Nature Conservancy.''Euphorbia purpurea''.
Center for Plant Conservation. This perennial herb grows from a rhizome and reaches a maximum height around one meter. It has slightly hairy, oppositely arranged leaves up to 3 centimeters long. The bracts are purplish in color, giving the plant its name. The bumpy fruit is about 6 to 8 millimeters long. Flowering occurs in May and June. The plant is easily propagated via

cutting Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force. Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the scal ...

s, rooting readily. This plant grows in dry to moist to swampy wooded areas and mountain

glade Glade may refer to: Computing * Glade Interface Designer, a GUI designer for GTK+ and GNOME Geography *Glade (geography), open area in woodland, synonym for "clearing" **Glade skiing, skiing amongst trees ;Places in the United States * Glade, Kan ...

s. It often grows in saturated soils around seeps near streams. It is not necessarily a

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

species, and it can be found in dry places. It grows in shade and in full sun. In wetter areas it may be associated with ''

Polemonium vanbruntiae ''Polemonium vanbruntiae'' is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family (biology), family Polemoniaceae. It is known by the common names Appalachian Jacob's ladder, bog Jacob's-ladder, and Vanbrunt's polemonium. It is native to eastern Can ...

'', '' Carex mitchelliana'', '' C. leptalea'', '' Chrysosplenium americanum'', '' Glyceria striata'', ''

Cirsium muticum ''Cirsium muticum'', also known as swamp thistle, marsh thistle, dunce-nettle, or horsetops, is a North American species of plants in the family Asteraceae, native to central and eastern Canada and the central and eastern United States. Descri ...

'', ''

Rhamnus alnifolia ''Rhamnus alnifolia'' is a species of flowering plant in the buckthorn family known by the common names alderleaf buckthorn, or alder buckthorn. Unlike other "buckthorns", this alder buckthorn does not have thorns. It is native to North America ...

'', '' Scirpus rubrotinctus'', '' Triadenum walteri'', and ''

Penthorum sedoides ''Penthorum sedoides'', known by the common name ditch stonecrop, is a perennial forb native to the eastern United States and Canada USDA, NRCS. 2014. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-49 ...

''. In a swampy area it was noted to grow with '' Sphenopholis pensylvanica'', '' Caltha palustris'', and '' Viola conspersa''. It has been found in

deciduous forest In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...

habitat such as ''

Quercus muhlenbergii ''Quercus muehlenbergii'', the chinquapin (or chinkapin) oak, is a deciduous species of tree in the white oak group (''Quercus'' sect. ''Quercus''). The species was often called ''Quercus acuminata'' in older literature. ''Quercus muehlenbergii' ...

'', ''

Fraxinus quadrangulata ''Fraxinus quadrangulata'', the blue ash, is a species of ash native primarily to the Midwestern United States from Oklahoma to Michigan, as well as the Bluegrass region of Kentucky and the Nashville Basin region of Tennessee. Isolated populati ...

'', '' Cenchrus occidentalis'', ''

Viburnum prunifolium ''Viburnum prunifolium'' (known as blackhaw or black haw, blackhaw viburnum, sweet haw, and stag bush) is a species of '' Viburnum'' native to eastern North America, from Connecticut west to eastern Kansas, and south to Alabama and Texas. Growt ...

'', '' Quercus rubra'', ''

Hydrangea arborescens ''Hydrangea arborescens'', commonly known as smooth hydrangea, wild hydrangea, sevenbark, or in some cases, sheep flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Hydrangeaceae. It is a small- to medium-sized, multi-stemmed, deciduous shr ...

'', '' Aquilegia canadensis'', '' Thalictrum dioicum'', '' Carex eburnea'', ''

Impatiens pallida ''Impatiens'' is a genus of more than 1,000 species of flowering plants, widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere and the tropics. Together with the genus ''Hydrocera'' (one species), ''Impatiens'' make up the family Balsaminaceae ...

'', and ''

Phlox divaricata ''Phlox divaricata'', the wild blue phlox, woodland phlox, or wild sweet william, is a species of flowering plant in the family Polemoniaceae, native to forests and fields in eastern North America. Etymology The species name ''divaricata'' mea ...

''. There are about 50 known occurrences of this plant in seven or eight states. One threat to the species is

herbivory A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example foliage or marine algae, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their plant diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouthpart ...

by animals such as

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

and

groundhog The groundhog (''Marmota monax''), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. The groundhog is a lowland creature of North America; it is found through mu ...

s. It is threatened by the loss and degradation of its habitat as wetlands are filled in and the moist seeps and streams dry up. Logging in some areas may be a threat.

Grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...

has apparently been beneficial for the species by reducing

competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indiv ...

by other plants; however,

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...

and trampling may be a problem, and some historical populations in eastern Pennsylvania were eliminated by grazing.

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5410521 purpurea Plants described in 1840 Flora of the Eastern United States