Houseplant · Euphorbiaceae
Croton
Codiaeum variegatum
Hand it bright light and steady, humid warmth, and the croton brightens a room with leaves in red, orange, and gold.
Bright indirect
50–85°F · 10–29°C
USDA 11–12
2–8 ft · 0.6–2.4 m
Overview
The whole appeal of a croton is its leaves, splashed with red, orange, yellow, and green in patterns that change from one plant to the next. Here's the thing, though: what's sold as croton is actually Codiaeum variegatum, a woody evergreen from the spurge family that grows wild from Malesia into the southwest Pacific. Indoors it turns into a bold, leathery-leaved shrub that can climb past head height once it's been around a while.
Wondering why your croton looks a bit drab? It almost always comes down to light. Give it a bright spot with a little direct sun and the colors really deepen, but tuck it in a dim corner and the new leaves just drift back toward green. It's a tropical plant at heart, so it wants warmth and humidity, and it isn't a fan of being moved, which is why it'll often drop a flush of leaves after a move or a cold draft.
It does ask for a bit of attention, but it's not a drama queen once it's settled. Keep it warm, water when the top of the soil dries, and keep the milky sap off your skin and away from pets, since every part of the plant is an irritant.
Care
The short version: give it lots of bright light with a little direct sun so the colors stay rich, keep it warm above 50°F (10°C), aim for high humidity, and only water once the soil's top half-inch to inch feels dry.
Light
Croton runs on light, and honestly, the more it gets the brighter those leaves turn out. Go for bright indirect light with some direct sun, because a dim spot just drains the color back to green. Too much harsh, all-day sun can scorch the leaves gray, though, so filtered or shifting sun is the happy middle.
Water
Water when the top half-inch to one inch of soil dries, then give it a good drink and let the extra drain off. Ease up in winter once growth slows down. Croton doesn't like either extreme and it'll drop leaves if the soil stays soggy or dries out hard for too long, so try to keep it steady.
Soil
Pot it up in a well-drained, humus-rich mix with plenty of organic matter. Drainage is what matters most here, since water sitting at the roots is what kicks off rot in a plant that otherwise likes to stay evenly moist.
Temperature
Keep it somewhere between 50°F and 85°F (10°C to 29°C), and don't let it sit below 50°F. Cold drafts, chilly windows, and sudden temperature swings will all nudge it into dropping leaves, so a warm, steady spot really is its happy place.
Humidity
Being tropical, croton wants high humidity, and dry indoor air tends to leave the tips brown and crisp. Group it with other plants, set the pot on a pebble tray, or run a humidifier through the heating season and it'll be much happier.
Feeding
Feed it a general-purpose fertilizer through the growing season, spring into autumn, while it's busy pushing out leaves. Then ease off to a light hand in winter, when growth pretty much stops anyway.
Pruning
Croton takes a hard cut in early spring, before new growth starts, and that's exactly when to deal with a leggy plant. Cutting it back this way pushes fresh branching from lower down. Wear gloves, though, since pruning opens up the irritant sap.
Repotting
Repot it every 1 to 2 years, or sooner once it's rootbound, moving up to a slightly larger pot in spring. Roots circling out the drainage holes, water running straight through, and stalled growth all tell you it's time.
Size & spacing
Indoors a croton usually reaches 2 to 8 feet (61 to 244 cm) tall and spreads 2 to 6 feet (61 to 183 cm) wide, though it can get taller in the tropics. Give it some room so air can move around the foliage and the leaves aren't all crowded together.
Troubleshooting
Most croton drama plays out in the leaves, and the cause is usually light, water, humidity, or some change it didn't care for. Match what you're seeing to the list below, and you can step in before a little hiccup leaves you with bare stems.
Wilting even though the soil's soaking and stinky
If a plant's wilting while the soil's still wet, that's root rot from too much water or a pot that won't drain. The roots go brown and mushy instead of firm and pale. Stop watering, repot it into fresh, well-drained mix in a pot with drainage holes, trim away the rotted roots, and water again only once the top of the soil dries.
Fix:
- Stop watering and allow the soil to dry to the appropriate level
- Repot into fresh, well-drained, humus-rich mix in a pot with drainage, trimming rotted roots
- Resume watering only when the top half-inch to inch of soil dries
Leaves letting go soon after you moved it
Did your croton suddenly drop a bunch of leaves? It hates change, so a new spot, a cold draft, or a temperature swing is usually behind it. Cold below 50°F (10°C) and soil that bounces between soggy and bone dry will do it too. Settle it in one warm, steady place, keep the watering even, and it'll grow the leaves back.
Fix:
- Settle the plant in one stable, warm, draft-free spot and avoid further moves
- Keep temperatures above 50°F / 10°C and away from cold windows, doors, and vents
- Maintain consistent moisture, watering only when the top half-inch to inch of soil dries
Thin webbing with a dusty, freckled look up close
Hot, dry air rolls out the welcome mat for spider mites, which leave fine webbing and a speckled, dusty look on the undersides of the leaves. Rinse the foliage and bump up the humidity to set them back, then treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil and repeat as directed. Keep the plant away from the others until it's clean.
Fix:
- Rinse foliage and increase humidity
- Treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil, repeating as directed
- Isolate the plant to limit spread
Fuzzy white spots, brown bumps, and a sticky mess
See white fuzzy clumps tucked into the leaf axils? That's mealybugs. Those hard little brown bumps stuck on the stems are the scale, and both dribble sticky honeydew as they feed. Wipe the ones you can spot off with a swab dipped in alcohol, then follow up with horticultural oil or insecticidal soap and stay on it. Pull the plant away from its neighbors until every last bug is gone.
Fix:
- Wipe off or dab visible pests with an alcohol-moistened swab
- Treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil, repeating as directed
- Isolate the plant until the infestation is cleared
Those bright colors slipping back to green
When a croton sits in too little light, the new leaves come in greener and duller and that wild color slips away. Move it somewhere bright, ideally with a little direct sun, and the variegation comes back on fresh growth. Can't find a sunny window? A cultivar like 'Petra' holds its color better in interior light.
Fix:
- Move to a brighter spot with bright indirect light, ideally with some direct sun
- For best color give the brightest light the plant can tolerate without scorching
Grayish, faded leaves on the side facing the sun
Shove a croton straight into harsh, all-day sun and the most exposed leaves go gray, dull, or scorched. What it wants instead is bright but filtered light, or sun that shifts across the day rather than beating down for hours. Bump the light up slowly so it can adjust instead of burning.
Fix:
- Provide bright but filtered/indirect light or shifting sun rather than intense all-day direct sun
- Acclimate gradually when increasing light
Lower leaves yellowing and dropping off
Losing leaves low down, in the shaded part? That usually just means the spot's too dim. Brighten things up and turn the plant so light reaches it more evenly. And once a leaf is fully spent and lets go, go ahead and pull it off.
Fix:
- Increase light levels
- Remove fully spent leaves and reposition for more even light exposure
Brown, crispy tips and leaf edges
Dry indoor air is what's behind those crisp brown tips, since croton really wants high humidity. Soil that dries out too far between drinks makes it worse, too. Group your plants, set the pot on a pebble tray or run a humidifier, and keep the soil evenly moist by watering once the top half-inch to inch dries.
Fix:
- Raise humidity with a pebble tray, grouping plants, or a humidifier
- Keep soil evenly moist (not wet), watering when the top half-inch to inch dries
Toxicity
Croton's worth a little caution. That milky sap carries irritant diterpene esters that can upset a pet's mouth and gut and give people contact dermatitis, and no part of it is safe to eat. So pull on some gloves before you cut it, and keep the leaves and trimmings away from animals and kids.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Mild
A cat that chews a leaf will usually drool and might vomit or get loose stools, and the milky sap can leave its mouth and skin irritated.
Dogs Mild
Expect drooling, an upset stomach, and sometimes diarrhea after a dog gnaws the plant, and sap on the muzzle or paws can redden the skin too.
Horses Caution
That same irritant sap can sting the mouth and gut, so keep a horse from grazing or mouthing the foliage and any cut stems.
Rabbits Caution
A small grazer really shouldn't be nibbling this one, since the diterpene esters in the sap can inflame the mouth and digestive tract, so keep it well out of reach.
Livestock Caution
Goats, sheep, and cattle should be kept away from the plant and any prunings, since the caustic sap irritates the mouth and stomach if it's eaten.
Birds Caution
A nosy bird can get hurt by that irritant sap, so make sure it stays away from the leaves and any bits that have been chewed or dropped.
People Caution
None of the croton is safe to eat. Its milky sap stings the skin and eyes and can trigger contact dermatitis, so pull on gloves before cutting it and keep the foliage out of kids' reach.
Wear gloves when cutting or propagating; the milky sap can irritate skin and mucous membranes and may stain. Keep cut surfaces and fallen leaves away from pets and children
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
There's a long list of named crotons, sorted mostly by leaf shape and the mix of colors. These are the ones you're most likely to run into.
'Petra'
This is the most common cultivar, with dark green leaves veined in yellow, pink, and orange-red, and it's the one UF/IFAS points to for holding its color well in indoor light.
'Gold Dust'
It's got rounded, oval bright green leaves flecked all over with golden yellow.
'Mammy'
It stands out for its narrow, twisting leaves in a bright jumble of colors.
'Eleanor Roosevelt'
It shows medium green leaves dotted with golden yellow that deepens into dark red.
'Andreanum'
It's got broad oval yellow leaves edged and veined in gold.
'Spirale'
It twists its red and green leaves into a loose spiral.
'Majesticum'
It grows long leaves, around nine inches, banded in yellow and red.
How to propagate
Want more crotons? You can take cuttings or try air-layering, and either way you'll keep a named cultivar true to its parent. Just slip on gloves first so the sap doesn't get on your skin.
Stem cuttingsModerate
Summer · Several weeks to root
Take softwood or tip cuttings in summer and root them in a moist medium, where they'll take several weeks to settle in. Wear gloves, because that milky sap is an irritant. Cuttings keep a cultivar true to type, while seedlings come out looking nothing like the parent.
Air layeringModerate
Spring · Several weeks
Croton air-layers easily in spring, rooting on the stem over several weeks before you sever it and pot it up. Wear gloves here too, since the sap irritates skin.
Myths
That croton you bought is actually part of the true Croton genus.
Despite the name, the plant you bring home is Codiaeum variegatum, not a species of the genus Croton. Sure, they share the Euphorbiaceae family, but Kew's Plants of the World Online lists Codiaeum variegatum as the accepted name in its own genus. The common name is just a leftover that stuck.
A croton losing loads of leaves is a goner.
Heavy leaf drop is the plant reacting to change, not throwing in the towel. A move, a draft, cold below 50°F, or uneven watering can all set it off. Once you steady its conditions it usually bounces back and grows the foliage in again.
Crotons keep looking colorful wherever you put them.
Color comes down entirely to light. In a dim spot the leaves slide back toward plain green and lose their markings, while bright light, often with some direct sun, is what brings the color out. Pile on too much harsh sun, though, and it swings the other way and washes the leaves to gray.