Species · genus Acalypha · Euphorbiaceae

Dwarf Chenilleplant

Acalypha herzogiana Pax & K.Hoffm.

Also known as: Dwarf-cattail · Red Firetail · Strawberry Firetail · Strawberry-foxtail · Trailing Chenilleplant

Growth habit

subshrub

Native range

Argentina Northeast, Bolivia, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, Paraguay

Acalypha herzogiana — reference photo — no rights reserved · CC0

Cultivars of A. herzogiana

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under A. herzogiana yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

A Little-Known Subshrub

Acalypha herzogiana is a subshrub in the Euphorbiaceae family, the same family that gives us the more familiar copperleaf and chenille plants. It carries the botanical name given by Pax and K.Hoffmann, first published in 1921.

Source: Kew

South American Roots

This plant is native to Bolivia, southeastern and southern Brazil, Paraguay, and northeastern Argentina. It grows primarily within the wet tropical biome of that region, and has also become introduced in Alabama.

Source: Kew

A Catkin-Bearing Genus

As a member of Acalypha, this plant belongs to a genus of evergreen shrubs, trees, or annuals bearing simple leaves and catkin-like racemes of tiny flowers, which in some species are brightly coloured. In the trade it has sometimes circulated under the misapplied names Acalypha reptans or Acalypha pendula, though herzogiana is its correct and accepted name.

Source: RHS

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-12d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 12 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

16–29 °C

Soil mix

Rich, well-draining loamy potting mix

Propagation

Softwood stem cuttings rooted in warmth

Fertilizing

Balanced liquid feed monthly in the growing season

Growth rate

Fast

Flowering

Small catkin-like blooms, uncommon indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Toxic to cats & dogs & humans

Euphorbiaceae commonly carry an irritant milky latex that can harm skin, eyes, and mucous membranes if cut or chewed. This is where toxicity lives: every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-12d) · ai:claude-fable-5 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (family inference)

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Dwarf Chenilleplant yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — and a clear photo of your plant are exactly what keep this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.