Croton

That's croton, not crouton!

I'm talking about a small plant, only about 1 foot tall. We've always seen it on our property, but this year - what I'm starting to call "The Year That Everything Came In Waves", it has taken over huge swaths of land.

I thought this was Texas Croton (Croton texensis), but close examination of the photos at the Wildflower Center say it's something else.

I poked around and think what we have is actually One-seed Croton (Croton monanthogynus). The leaves, color, and size of the plant are all a match.

Here's an overview shot, showing it covering the ground quite thickly.

Here's a close-up of a single plant so you get a better idea of the appearance. They look like miniature trees. They have woody trunks and a small canopy of leaves.

Finally, here's a photo of a small clump of crotons. As you can see the canopies merge together and actually form a dense cover. I heard our county agriculture agent say that young quail will hide from hawks under the crotons. I thought he was kidding, but I now see how effective a hiding spot it is.