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Climbing Dogbane

Thyrsanthella difformis

Found in moderately dry to moist upland forests and woodlands, bottomland and riparian forests, moist prairies, flatwoods, swamps, marshes, old fields, roadsides. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

22
Good

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

Profile 82%

Light
Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to wet
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
May to July
Fruiting season
July to September

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 49 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 7

Forests and woodlands

Trail on Little Kennesaw Mountain.
Named place / source context. Shown: Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Georgia, a neighboring state.Trail on Little Kennesaw Mountain., Unidentified in HFC record, undated. Public domain. Source record.

Prairies and grasslands

Grand Prairie, Coosa Valley Prairies, Floyd County
Limestone prairie. Shown: Grand Prairie, Coosa Valley Prairies, Floyd County, Georgia, a neighboring state.Grand Prairie, Coosa Valley Prairies, Floyd County, Alan M. Cressler / U.S. Geological Survey, undated. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp
Regional / representative. Shown: Southern coastal swamps, Florida to Virginia; state not identified, a neighboring state.Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Freshwater marshes

Georgia pond and emergent wetland
Regional / representative. Shown: Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Georgia; representative pond ecosystem, a neighboring state.Georgia pond and emergent wetland, Robert 'Bob' Hynes, 1997. Public domain. Source record.

Floodplain and bottomland forests

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

Pine flatwoods

Flat, sandy Coastal Plain pine woodlands, wetter than sandhills and denser than savannas.

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

1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Thyrsanthella

  • Colomychus talisDistinguished Colymychus
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
4BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Trachelospermum

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
Apocynaceae
Flower color
White, yellow or green
Fruit begins
July
Fruit ends
September

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Trachelospermum difforme

Conservation status

Alabama rankSNR
Global rankG4G5 [G5]
AL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources