Lythraceae

Creeping waxweed

Cuphea procumbens Ortega

Family: Lythraceae
Genus: Cuphea

Pet and kid safety: not checked yet. Check pet-safe plants

Creeping waxweed (Cuphea procumbens) — Photo: Wikimedia Commons contributor, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons

Is yours looking unwell? Scan your plant — free

Common names

By language (3)

Chinese: 平卧萼距花, 偃伏雪茄花
English: Creeping waxweed
Spanish: Hierba de la calavera, Macachampa de milpa, Nube azul

Synonyms

Cuphea bilimekii Koehne
Cuphea erecta Hoffmanns.
Cuphea lanceolata Baill.
Cuphea palustris Hemsl.
Cuphea procumbens var. pallidiflora Fenzl
Cuphea purpurea var. lilacina Haage ex Herder
Parsonsia bilimekii (Koehne) Standl.
Parsonsia dispersa M.E.Jones
Parsonsia procumbens Small
Parsonsia procumbens (Ortega) A.Heller

Characteristics

Growth habit: Forb/herb
Lifespan: Annual
In the US and Canada: Lower 48 states: introduced

Photos

Photo: Wikimedia Commons contributor, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Oscar Alejandro Morales Juárez, CC BY-SA 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Kurt Stüber [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Jose Antonio Aranda Pineda, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Alexis López Hernández, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Michael Wolf, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Oscar Alejandro Morales Juárez, CC BY-SA 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Michael Wolf, CC BY-SA 3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Sagnik Dutta Roy, CC BY 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Colin Bradshaw, CC BY 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Eugenio Padilla, CC BY-SA 4.0, from iNaturalist
Photo: Colin Bradshaw, CC BY 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons

More in Cuphea

Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.