Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Croton verreauxii
Common name
Green native cascarilla, Native cascarilla
Family
Euphorbiaceae
Where found
Forest, rainforest margins as a pioneer species, regrowth, and along streams. Coast and ranges north of Berry, occasionally in the ranges farther south.
Notes
Shrub or tree to 7 m high. Bark dark brown, finely longitudinally fissured. Young stems densely hairy with scale like stellate hairs (needs a hand lens or a macro app on your phone/tablet to see), usually becoming hairless, often purplish. Leaves alternating up the stems, 5–13 cm long, 15–50 mm wide, green and hairless on both surfaces, secondary veins distinct on lower surface, margins usually toothed or scalloped, or rarely entire. Old leaves often turning orange before falling. Male and female flowers on the same plant. Flowers white to yellow-green, sepals and petals 1-1.8 mm long. Male flowers with 5 petals and 5 sepals, female flowers with 0 petals and 5 sepals. Flowers borne singly or in clusters of 2-3, along the axis of elongated clusters 3–17 cm long. Seed cases orange-brown to grey, 3-lobed, 4–6 mm long, 5–6.5 mm in diameter, ripe Apr.-Sept. Seeds mottled brown and cream.
PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Croton~verreauxii (accessed 7 January, 2021)
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