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Elliott's Gentian

Gentiana catesbaei

Found in pocosins, moist longleaf pine savanna edges, edges of moist hardwood forests, bluff seepages. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

30
Good

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

Profile 82%

Height
1–1.5 feet
Spread
6 inches–1 foot
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 1 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 100 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
September to November

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 12 Florida counties.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 4

Pocosins and bay forests

Dense evergreen shrub wetlands and bay forests on wet, acid peat of the Coastal Plain.

Pine savannas

Open, fire-kept longleaf pine stands over grasses and wildflowers on wet to moist sandy soil.

Moist forests

Forests on moist but not wet ground, such as rich slopes and ravines.

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Gentiana

  • Endothenia hebesanaVerbena Bud Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
10BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Gentiana

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
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Gentiana

  • Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
  • Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Gentianaceae
Hardiness
Zones 6a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Blue

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Gentiana catesbaei

Conservation status

Florida rankSNR
Global rankG5
FL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources