Taxon: Cuphea carthagenensis (Jacq.) J. F. Macbr.

Summary

Genus:

Cuphea

Family:

Lythraceae

Nomen number:

12631

Place of publication:

Publ. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Bot. Ser. 8:124. 1930

Verified:

05/12/2012 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

83 (52 active, 11 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Basionym
Lythrum carthagenense Jacq.

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Cuphea balsamona Cham. & Schltdl.

Images (1 total. Click on image for more.)

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

University of Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
American Herbal Products Association. 1992. Herbs of commerce
Boggan, J. et al. 1992. Checklist of the plants of the Guianas
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
Duré, R. & J. Molero. 2000. Notas nomenclaturales, taxonómicas y corológicas sobre el género Cuphea (Lythraceae) en el Paraguay. Collect. Bot. (Barcelona) 25:228. Note: lists as "carthagenense"
El Bassam, N. 1998. Energy plant species. 138-139.
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
Gómez-Pompa, A. & V. Sosa, eds. 1978-. Flora de Veracruz.
Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
Jørgensen, P. M., ed. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Bolivia (Catalogue of vascular plants of Bolivia) (on-line resource).
Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Reitz, R., ed. 1965-. Flora ilustrada catarinense.
Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.
Smith, A. C. 1979-1991. Flora vitiensis nova.
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala.
Wagner, W. L. et al. 1990. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i
Weakley, A. S. 2011. Flora of the southern and middle Atlantic states.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
Wunderlin, R. & B. Hansen. Atlas of Florida vascular plants (on-line resource).

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	Colombian waxweed	1	Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
English	Columbian cuphea	1	Wagner, W. L. et al. 1990. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i
English	tarweed	1	Wagner, W. L. et al. 1990. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i
Portuguese	sete-sangrias	2	American Herbal Products Association. 1992. Herbs of commerce
Spanish	escobilla	2	Rzedowski, J. & G. Rzedowski, eds. 1991-. Flora del Bajio y de regiones adyacentes.

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Chiapas		Gómez-Pompa, A. & V. Sosa, eds. 1978-. Flora de Veracruz.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Tabasco		Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave		Gómez-Pompa, A. & V. Sosa, eds. 1978-. Flora de Veracruz.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil			Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Barbados			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Dominica			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Guadeloupe			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	Martinique			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	St. Lucia			Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
1	Native	Southern America	Caribbean	United States	Puerto Rico		Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Belize			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Costa Rica			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	El Salvador			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Guatemala			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Honduras			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Nicaragua			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Panama			Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	French Guiana			Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Guyana			Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Suriname			Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela	Bolívar		Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela	Mérida		Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Argentina			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Paraguay			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Uruguay			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Bolivia	El Beni		Jørgensen, P. M., ed. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Bolivia (Catalogue of vascular plants of Bolivia) (on-line resource).
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia			Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Ecuador			Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Peru			Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia	New South Wales		George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia	Queensland		George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	South-Central U.S.A.	United States	Texas	s.e.	Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Alabama		Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Florida		Wunderlin, R. & B. Hansen. Atlas of Florida vascular plants (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Georgia		Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Louisiana		Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Mississippi		Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	North Carolina		Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	South Carolina		Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
4	Naturalized	Pacific	North-Central Pacific	United States	Hawaii		Wagner, W. L. et al. 1990. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i
4	Naturalized	Pacific	South-Central Pacific	French Polynesia	Society Islands		Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
4	Naturalized	Pacific	Southwestern Pacific	Fiji			Smith, A. C. 1979-1991. Flora vitiensis nova.
4	Naturalized	Pacific	Southwestern Pacific	New Caledonia			Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).

Native
Northern America

SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Chiapas, Tabasco, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave]

Southern America

CARIBBEAN: Barbados, Dominica, Guadeloupe, St. Lucia, Martinique, United States [Puerto Rico]
CENTRAL AMERICA: Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela [Bolívar, Mérida]
BRAZIL: Brazil
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Bolivia [El Beni], Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay

Naturalized
Australasia

AUSTRALIA: Australia [New South Wales, Queensland]

Northern America

SOUTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina]
SOUTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [Texas (s.e.)]

Pacific

NORTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC: United States [Hawaii]
SOUTH-CENTRAL PACIFIC: French Polynesia [Society Islands]
SOUTHWESTERN PACIFIC: Fiji, New Caledonia

Reference(s)

Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & M. T. Strong. 2012. Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contr. Bot. 98
Brako, L. & J. L. Zarucchi. 1993. Catalogue of the flowering plants and gymnosperms of Peru. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 45
Davidse, G. et al., eds. 1994. Flora mesoamericana.
Forzza, R. C. et al., coord. Lista de espécies da flora do Brasil (on-line resource).
Funk, V. et al. 2007. Checklist of the plants of the Guiana Shield (Venezuela: Amazonas, Bolivar, Delta Amacuro; Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana). Contr. U.S. Natl. Herb. 55:1-584.
George, A. S., ed. 1980-. Flora of Australia.
Godfrey, R. K. & J. W. Wooten. 1979-1981. Aquatic and wetland plants of southeastern United States, 2 vol.
Gómez-Pompa, A. & V. Sosa, eds. 1978-. Flora de Veracruz.
Hokche, O. et al. 2008. Nuevo catálogo de la flora vascular de Venezuela.
Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry. Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER): plant threats to Pacific ecosystems (on-line resource).
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Jørgensen, P. M. & S. León-Yánez, eds. 1999. Catalogue of the vascular plants of Ecuador. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 75
Jørgensen, P. M., ed. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de Bolivia (Catalogue of vascular plants of Bolivia) (on-line resource).
Smith, A. C. 1979-1991. Flora vitiensis nova.
Wagner, W. L. et al. 1990. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawai'i
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
Wunderlin, R. & B. Hansen. Atlas of Florida vascular plants (on-line resource).

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Fuels	petroleum substitute/alcohol	potential	El Bassam, N. 1998. Energy plant species. 138-139.
Medicines	folklore		McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=12631. Accessed 12 May 2026.