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.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 2

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

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

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.

Northern Mockingbird
Mimus polyglottos
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Purple Finch
Carpodacus purpureus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Red-tailed Hawk
Buteo jamaicensis
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Red-winged Blackbird
Agelaius phoeniceus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Accipiter striatus
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Tufted Titmouse
Baeolophus bicolor
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Turkey Vulture
Cathartes aura
Birds. 2 shared habitats
White-breasted Nuthatch
Sitta carolinensis
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Willow Flycatcher
Empidonax traillii
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Wood Duck
Aix sponsa
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Yellow-breasted Chat
Icteria virens
Birds. 2 shared habitats
Acadian Flycatcher
Empidonax virescens
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Black Duck
Anas rubripes
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Crow
Corvus brachyrhynchos
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Goldfinch
Carduelis tristis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Redstart
Setophaga ruticilla
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bald Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bank Swallow
Riparia riparia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Belted Kingfisher
Megaceryle alcyon
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-and-White Warbler
Mniotilta varia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue Grosbeak
Passerina caerulea
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Broad-winged Hawk
Buteo platypterus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Brown Creeper
Certhia americana
Birds. 1 shared habitat

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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How to check your spot

Smooth False-buttonweed

At a glance

Natural habitats

Also found with this plant

Who uses this plant?

Plant details

Conservation status

Will it fit your yard?

Sources

More Spermacoce