Rice Cutgrass
Leersia oryzoides
Found in marshes, riverbanks, pond-shores, and a wide diversity of other wetlands. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- 5 feet
- Light
- Full to part sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to wet
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Bloom
- June to November
- Fruiting season
- Spring to fall
Not yet recorded · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves
Recorded in 42 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 141 animals.
- Black-billed CuckooCoccyzus erythropthalmus
- Black-throated Blue WarblerDendroica caerulescens
- Brewer's BlackbirdEuphagus cyanocephalus
- Cerulean WarblerDendroica cerulea
- Eastern BluebirdSialia sialis
- Evening GrosbeakCoccothraustes vespertinus
- Fish CrowCorvus ossifragus
- Fox SparrowPasserella iliaca
- GadwallAnas strepera
- Henslow's SparrowAmmodramus henslowii
- KilldeerCharadrius vociferus
- Least BitternIxobrychus exilis
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Little Blue HeronEgretta caerulea
- Northern Rough-winged SwallowStelgidopteryx serripennis
- Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
- Rose-breasted GrosbeakPheucticus ludovicianus
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Savannah SparrowPasserculus sandwichensis
- SoraPorzana carolina
- Swamp SparrowMelospiza georgiana
Who uses this plant?
5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Leersia
- Ancyloxypha numitorLeast Skipper
- Crocidophora serratissimalisAngelic Crocidiphora
- Lethe anthedonNorthern Pearly Eye
- Lon hobomokHobomok Skipper
- Panoquina ocolaOcola Skipper, Long-Winged Skiiper
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
6BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Leersia
- Aix sponsaWood Duck
- Anas rubripesAmerican Black Duck
- Aythya americanaRedhead
- Porzana carolinaSora
- Rallus elegansKing Rail
- Rallus limicolaVirginia Rail
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
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Poaceae
- Flower color
- Green
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Growth habit
- Spreads by rhizomes
- Foliage color
- Dark green
- Fruit begins
- Spring
- Fruit ends
- Fall
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “June to November” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Foliage color · “Dark green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Spreads by rhizomes” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Height · “5 feet” · Tennessee Smart Yards (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- Light · “Full to part sun” · Tennessee Smart Yards (ranked first; Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- Soil · “wet to moderately wet” · Tennessee Smart Yards (ranked first; Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ) · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
Also known as
Rice Cut Grass
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Growing cautions
- Spreads aggressively. Spreads aggressively by rhizomes and often produces dense colonies. Tennessee Smart Yards
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)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- 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