Common Wild Quinine

Parthenium hysterophorus

Found in disturbed areas. 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 18%

Soil moisture: Somewhat dry to moist

No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…

At a glance

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

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

Recorded in 18 Alabama counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

22CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Parthenium

Achyra rantalisGarden Webworm Moth
Agrotis ipsilonIpsilon Dart, Black Cutworm, Greasy Cutworm
Chlorochlamys chloroleucariaBlackberry Looper Moth
Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
Condica sutorThe Cobbler, Cobbler Groundling
Cyclophora nanariaDwarf Tawny Wave
Epiblema strenuanaRagweed Borer
Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
Heliothis phloxiphagaSpotted Straw Sun Moth, Darker Spotted Straw Moth
Hellinsia inquinatusBlack-Marked Plume Moth

Show all 22

Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
Ogdoconta cinereolaCommon Pinkband Groundling
Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
Platynota rostranaOmnivorous Platynota
Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
Pleuroprucha asthenariaAsthene Wave
Pleuroprucha insulsariaCommon Tan Wave
Rachiplusia ouGray Looper
Spragueia guttataSpotted Spragueia
Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite
Carmenta ithacae

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

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Parthenium

Andrena gardineri

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

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: ASTERACEAE

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

Conservation status

Alabama rank	SNA
Global rank	Not available
AL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source

Native alternatives

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