Robin's-plantain
Erigeron pulchellus
88
Keystone
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- 1–2 feet
- Spread
- 1.5–2 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Usually moist
Space about 2 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 25 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Biennial or perennial
- Bloom
- Spring and summer
- Fruiting season
- Summer
Not yet recorded · Leaves
Recorded in 35 Alabama counties.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 106 animals.
- Prairie WarblerDendroica discolor
- Prothonotary WarblerProtonotaria citrea
- Scarlet TanagerPiranga olivacea
- Swainson's WarblerLimnothlypis swainsonii
- Tree SwallowTachycineta bicolor
- White-crowned SparrowZonotrichia leucophrys
- White-eyed VireoVireo griseus
- White-throated SparrowZonotrichia albicollis
- Wood ThrushHylocichla mustelina
- Worm-eating WarblerHelmitheros vermivorum
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
28CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Erigeron
- Abagrotis magnicupidaOne-Dotted Dart
- Archips purpuranaOmnivorous Leafroller Moth
- Autographa precationisCommon Looper Moth
- Bucculatrix angustataNarrow Bucculatrix
- Chlorochlamys chloroleucariaBlackberry Looper Moth
- Chlosyne nycteisSilvery Checkerspot
- Ctenoplusia oxygrammaSharp-Stigma Looper Moth
- Eugnosta erigeronanaFleabane Cochylid
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
Show all 28
- Herpetogramma thestealisZigzag Herpetogramma, Subtle-Feathered Grass Moth
- Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
- Leuconycta diphteroidesGreen Leuconycta
- Lioptilodes albistriolatusMousy Plume Moth
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Phyciodes tharosPearl Crescent, Crescentspot
- Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
- Schinia arcigeraArcigera Flower Moth
- Schinia lynxLynx Flower Moth
- Schinia obscurataObscure Schinia Moth, Erigeron Flower Moth
- Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
- Synchlora aerataWavy-Lined Emerald, Camouflaged Looper
- Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Hellinsia chlorias
- Xenotemna pallorana
74BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Erigeron
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
9Specialist beesPollen specialists
Pollen specialists · Erigeron
- Andrena asteris
- Andrena fulvipennis
- Andrena nubecula
- Andrena simplex
- Colletes americanus
- Colletes simulans
- Melissodes illatus
- Perdita boltoniae
- Protandrena aestivalis
4BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Erigeron
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Dendragapus obscurusDusky Grouse
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Tympanuchus pallidicinctusLesser Prairie-Chicken
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
Adult butterflies / moths 1
- Thanaos juvenalis
Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Other wasps · Other insects
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 3a–8b
- Flower color
- Pink or purple
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
What its natural habitat tells you
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “Spring and summer” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differs)
- Flower color · “Pink or purple” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox · Species profile fruit display season; not a local ripening date
- Fruit ends · “Summer” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox · Species profile fruit display season; not a local ripening date
- Hardiness · “Zones 3a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
- Height · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, Minnesota Wildflowers, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
- Life cycle · “Biennial or perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Minnesota Wildflowers differ)
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
- Soil · “Good drainage; Moist” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; NC Extension Plant Toolbox, Tennessee Smart Yards, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
- Spread · “1.5–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Brauns Erigeron; Brauns Flea Bane; Brauns Fleabane; Robin's plantain
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
In your garden
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Choose a county to begin.
Growing cautions
- Spreads by runners. Spreads through the garden by self-seeding and runners. NC State Extension Plant Toolbox
For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications