Smooth False-buttonweed

Spermacoce glabra

Found in moist shores, bottomlands, riverside drawdowns, rocky riversides in the mountains, disturbed areas in the Coastal Plain. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

Good

Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 88%

Height: Up to about 2 feet
Light: Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to moist

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At a glance

Life cycle: Perennial
Bloom: May to October

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Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 19 Alabama counties.

Habitats

Floodplain and bottomland forests; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there. All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 103 animals.

Alder Flycatcher
Empidonax alnorum
Birds. 2 shared habitats
American Robin
Turdus migratorius
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Black-crowned Night-heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Blue Jay
Cyanocitta cristata
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Polioptila caerulea
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Canada Goose
Branta canadensis
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Cedar Waxwing
Bombycilla cedrorum
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Chimney Swift
Chaetura pelagica
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Cliff Swallow
Petrochelidon pyrrhonota
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Common Nighthawk
Chordeiles minor
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Cooper's Hawk
Accipiter cooperii
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Double-crested Cormorant
Phalacrocorax auritus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Downy Woodpecker
Picoides pubescens
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Eastern Kingbird
Tyrannus tyrannus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Eastern Phoebe
Sayornis phoebe
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Gray Catbird
Dumetella carolinensis
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Great Blue Heron
Ardea herodias
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Great Egret
Ardea alba
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Great Horned Owl
Bubo virginianus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Green Heron
Butorides virescens
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Hooded Merganser
Lophodytes cucullatus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Mourning Dove
Zenaida macroura
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Northern Cardinal
Cardinalis cardinalis
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Northern Flicker
Colaptes auratus
Birds. 2 shared habitats

All wildlife of Alabama

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

6CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Spermacoce

Cyclophora nanariaDwarf Tawny Wave
Herpetogramma bipunctalisSouthern Beet Webworm, Two-Spotted Herpetogramma
Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
Spoladea recurvalisHawaiian Beet Webworm
Syngamia florellaOrange-Spotted Flower Moth
Xylophanes tersaTersa Sphinx

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

25BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Spermacoce

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

0Specialist beesPollen specialists

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

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Rubiaceae
Flower color: White

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

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “May to October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “White” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Height · “Up to about 2 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
primary_flower_color · “white” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Also known as

Smooth False Buttonweed

Conservation status

Alabama rank	SNR
Global rank	G4G5
AL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Smooth False-buttonweed

At a glance

Habitats

Also found with this plant

Who uses this plant?

Plant details

Conservation status

Will it fit your yard?

Sources

More Spermacoce