Southern Cutgrass

Leersia hexandra

Found in clay-based Carolina bays, limesink ponds, Florida wet prairies, lakes, pools, canals, marshes, usually in places where periodically or seasonally inundated. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

Good

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

Profile 94%

Height: Up to about 5 feet
Light: Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Moist to wet

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Leersia hexandra — bloom photograph — no rights reserved · CC0 · Original photograph

At a glance

Life cycle: Perennial
Bloom: April to November

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Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 57 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

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.

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.

Depression ponds and limesinks

Shallow ponds in Coastal Plain depressions, such as limesinks and the ponds in some Carolina bays, that rise and fall with the seasons.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 107 animals.

American Avocet
Recurvirostra americana
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Bittern
Botaurus lentiginosus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Black Duck
Anas rubripes
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Coot
Fulica americana
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Crow
Corvus brachyrhynchos
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Kestrel
Falco sparverius
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Pipit
Anthus rubescens
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American White Pelican
Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
Birds. 1 shared habitat
American Wigeon
Anas americana
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bald Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bank Swallow
Riparia riparia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Dendrocygna autumnalis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-crowned Night-heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Black-necked Stilt
Himantopus mexicanus
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Blue-winged Teal
Anas discors
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Boat-tailed Grackle
Quiscalus major
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Bonaparte's Gull
Chroicocephalus philadelphia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Canada Goose
Branta canadensis
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Canvasback
Aythya valisineria
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Caspian Tern
Hydroprogne caspia
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Chimney Swift
Chaetura pelagica
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Common Grackle
Quiscalus quiscula
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Common Nighthawk
Chordeiles minor
Birds. 1 shared habitat
Common Yellowthroat
Geothlypis trichas
Birds. 1 shared habitat

All wildlife of Florida

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Leersia

Ancyloxypha numitorLeast Skipper
Panoquina ocolaOcola Skipper, Long-Winged Skiiper

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

0BeesSoutheastern regional records

0Specialist beesPollen specialists

6BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

Aix sponsaWood Duck
Anas rubripesAmerican Black Duck
Aythya americanaRedhead
Porzana carolinaSora
Rallus elegansKing Rail
Rallus limicolaVirginia Rail

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: Poaceae
Flower color: Green or brown

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

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “April to November” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “Green or brown” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Height · “Up to about 5 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
Soil · “Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Also known as

Southern Cut Grass

Conservation status

Florida rank	S5
Global rank	G5
FL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Southern Cutgrass

At a glance

Natural habitats

Also found with this plant

Who uses this plant?

Plant details

Conservation status

Will it fit your yard?

Sources

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