Euphorbia schizoloba
Mojave spurge
(c) Katie Pearson, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Euphorbiaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Euphorbia schizoloba (Mojave spurge) is a native California herb in the Euphorbiaceae family, recognized by scalloped glands and erect habit diagnostic.
Mojave spurge is a California native perennial found in the western and desert mountains in rocky or sandy slopes at elevations of 1,000 to 2,300 meters. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces small yellow-green glandular structures in clustered cyathia. Growing with multiple decumbent to erect stems 10 to 40 centimeters tall, it has a distinctive branching pattern with leaves arranged in whorls of 3 to 5 near the stem tips. Its leaves are elliptic to ovate, 6 to 20 millimeters long, with entire margins and obtuse or acute tips. The fruit is an oblong, lobed structure 4 to 5 millimeters long, bearing white to gray seeds with a subtle net-like surface.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 13 sympatric species; scalloped glands and erect habit diagnostic
Habitat and range
Habitat: Rocky or sandy slopes
Elevation: 1000-2300 m
California counties: San Bernardino, Inyo
Outside California: Nevada, Arizona
Bloom period
Euphorbia schizoloba blooms Mar-May.
How to tell it apart
vs Croton: Euphorbia bleeds milky white latex and packs its flowers into a tiny cup (cyathium) rimmed with nectar glands; Croton has watery sap, stellate or scaly hairs, and ordinary small separate male and female flowers.; vs Stillingia: Euphorbia flowers sit in a gland-bearing cyathium; Stillingia bears its flowers in a spike with a pair of glands flanking each subtending bract and has no cyathium cup.; vs Ditaxis: Euphorbia has latex and the cyathium; Ditaxis has clear sap, 5-parted petaled male and female flowers, and 2-forked (malpighiaceous) hairs.; vs Asclepias: Both ooze milky sap, but Euphorbia's minute flowers cluster in a cyathium and ripen into a 3-lobed capsule; milkweeds have showy 5-parted flowers with a crown and paired follicles of plumed seeds.; vs Polygonum: Prostrate mat spurges leak milky sap when torn and have paired stipules with opposite leaves at the nodes; knotweeds have clear sap and a papery sheath (ocrea) wrapping each node.
Frequently asked questions
Is Euphorbia schizoloba native to California?
Yes. Euphorbia schizoloba is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Euphorbia schizoloba bloom?
Euphorbia schizoloba blooms Mar-May.
Where in California does Euphorbia schizoloba grow?
Euphorbia schizoloba occurs in San Bernardino, Inyo, at elevations of 1000-2300 m.
What plant family does Euphorbia schizoloba belong to?
Euphorbia schizoloba is in the Euphorbiaceae family, genus Euphorbia.
What habitat does Euphorbia schizoloba grow in?
Euphorbia schizoloba grows in Rocky or sandy slopes.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.