Mexican Sprangletop

Diplachne uninervia

Also listed as Leptochloa fusca subsp. uninervia, Diplachne fusca subsp. uninervia

Found in wet, muddy areas, especially alkaline or saline; adventive eastwards and northwards. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 65%

Light: Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to moist

Diplachne uninervia — whole photograph — Forest and Kim Starr · CC BY 3.0 us · Original photograph

At a glance

Bloom: January to December

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Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 4 Alabama counties.

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Leptochloa

Mocis latipesSmall Mocis, Striped Grass Looper

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

—Specialist beesPollen specialists

4BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Leptochloa

Anas creccaGreen-winged Teal
Aythya collarisRing-necked Duck
Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
Mareca streperaGadwall

Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Poaceae

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “January to December” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Also known as

Diplachne fusca subsp. uninervia; Leptochloa fusca subsp. uninervia; Leptochloa uninervia

Conservation status

Alabama rank	SNR
Global rank	G5
AL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

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