Nomenclature

Species name:

Euphorbia pinea   L.

Author(s):

Carl von Linné
   Sweden, 1707-1778

General names:

Pine Spurge

Maltese name:

Tenghud Komuni
Tenghud

Plant Family:

Euphorbiaceae   (Spurge Family)

Name Derivation:

Euphorbia = Named for Euphorbus, a Greek physician to Juba II, King of Mauretania. Euphorbus derives from eu, "good," and phorbe, "pasture or fodder," thus giving euphorbos the meaning "well fed." (Greek);

pinea = Relating to the pine with reference to the narrow leaves. (Latin).

Synonyms:

Euphorbia segetalis ssp. pinea, Euphorbia segetalis var. pineus, Euphorbia azorica, Euphorbia linifolia, Esula pinea

Plant Description

Life Cycle:

Perennial

Habitat:

Waste places and margins of fields

Sources in Malta:

Very common everywhere throughout the main islands.

Plant Height:

Up to 50cm in height

Flowering Time:

Feb - Nov

This is a very common weed which is quite widespread on all the main islands of the archipelago. This species is a perennial and reaches up to 50cm in height. It is simple or may be branched from the base. The stem is quite thick and is reddish in colour. The stems are usually hairless and are sometimes bright red in colour (especially the upper ones).

The leaves are found alternately on the stems in a dense manner in the base of the stems, eventually becoming less dense as one ascends the stem. Usually there is a small area on the stem between the rays and the upper leaves which is devoid of leaves. The leaves may reach up to 3cm in length and are linear to spear-shaped, and are entire (not divided into different lobes or segments) and sometimes have a pink colour. They easily release a white milky substance when cut typical of Euphorbial species. The leaves underneath the inflorescence (the Ray leaves) are usually of a somewhat different shape. They are grouped in up to 6 leaves that are usually elliptical in shape (oval in shape narrowing at both ends), and may have either an acute or obtuse end.

Euphorbia pinea is a monoecious plant (separate male and female flowers on the same plant). The flowers lack petals and are borne in umbel clusters (inflorescence of many flowers on different pedicels that originate from the same point). These umbel clusters are called Rays. Below these Rays are the Ray leaves, and these Rays end forming the Cyathium. There are usually up to 6 Rays in this species, and the Rays may sometimes also divide further up. Along the Rays (especially when the Rays branch) lie the Raylet leaves which are deltate (triangular) to rhombic (diamond) in shape, with a blunt edge and a heart-shaped base.

The Cyathium consists of 2 bracts that have a similar shape to the Raylet leaves over which lie the male and female flowers. The male flowers are tiny and consist of a single stamen and lie over the gland which has up to 4 horns and is greenish in colour. The female flower is much larger and is a round structure with 3 styles and hanging on the bracts to a tiny stalk. There are sometimes also 2 lateral appendages around the central gland lying on the bracts (these are developing branching rays).

The capsule is up to 3mm by 3mm in size and is deeply notched in shape. The seeds are up to 2mm in size and are oval in shape and pale grey in colour. They are evenly and fairly deeply pitted.

This species may be confused with many similar species in the Mediterranean area. This is a perennial plant which has some very similar species that are however annual (grow, flower, make seeds and die within a year). These species are Euphorbia medicaginea which differs in being an annual and having wormshaped seeds that are black in colour, Euphorbia segetalis and Euphorbia taurinensis which are both annuals and differ in the shape of the leaves. All three above species have never been recorded from the Maltese Islands.
Euphorbia biumbellata differs in having a larger number of umbels (8-20) which make it appear much more crowded and dense, and the seeds are not pitted. This species has been recorded in the past from the Maltese Islands from 2 localities but has not been recorded recently.
Euphorbia portlandica and Euphorbia deflexa are 2 other similar species that have never been recorded from our islands but are present in Europe and differ by having oval to oblanceolate (area near stalk being spear-shaped) in shape.

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