Virginia Snakeroot
Aristolochia serpentaria
Found in dry to moist forests, perhaps more restricted to moist situations over acidic substrate, ranging into drier situations over calcareous or mafic substrates. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Florida edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- 1.5–2 feet
- Spread
- 1–2 feet
- Light
- Deep shade, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
Space about 1.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 44 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- May to June
- Fruiting season
- June to July
Recorded in 38 Florida counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.
Forests on moist but not wet ground, such as rich slopes and ravines.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 105 animals.
- Pine SiskinCarduelis pinus
- Purple FinchCarpodacus purpureus
- Red-bellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinus
- Red-headed WoodpeckerMelanerpes erythrocephalus
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Red-winged BlackbirdAgelaius phoeniceus
- Ruby-crowned KingletRegulus calendula
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Sharp-shinned HawkAccipiter striatus
- Tufted TitmouseBaeolophus bicolor
- Turkey VultureCathartes aura
- White-eyed VireoVireo griseus
- White-throated SparrowZonotrichia albicollis
- Wild TurkeyMeleagris gallopavo
- Yellow-bellied SapsuckerSphyrapicus varius
- Yellow-breasted ChatIcteria virens
- Yellow-rumped WarblerDendroica coronata
- Acadian FlycatcherEmpidonax virescens
- American RedstartSetophaga ruticilla
- Bachman's SparrowAimophila aestivalis
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Black-and-White WarblerMniotilta varia
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Brown-headed NuthatchSitta pusilla
Who uses this plant?
2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL
Genus host records with ranges including FL · Endodeca
- Battus philenorPipevine Swallowtail
- Battus polydamasPolydamus Swallowtail
1BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Aristolochia
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 claimNo records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Aristolochiaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 5a–9b
- Soil pH
- Neutral
- Flower color
- Brown/copper, cream, yellow, purple or red
- Fruit begins
- June
- Fruit ends
- July
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “May to June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Brown/copper, cream, yellow, purple or red” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Fruit begins · “June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “July” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Hardiness · “Zones 5a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1.5–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Deep shade (less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Aristolochia serpentaria; Serpent Birthwort; Turpentine Root
Conservation status
| Florida rank | S4? |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G4 [G5] |
| FL 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.
Sources
- Atlas of Florida Plants
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Florida edition
- NatureServe Explorer
- 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