Eastern False-aloe
Manfreda virginica
Native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- 3–6 feet
- Spread
- 3–4 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Dry to somewhat dry
Space about 3.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 8 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
- Evergreen
Recorded in 17 Florida counties.
Who uses this plant?
1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL
Genus host records with ranges including FL · Agave
- Melitara prodenialisEastern Cactus-Boring Moth, Eastern Blue Cactus Borer
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
4BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Agave
- Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Patagioenas fasciataBand-tailed Pigeon
- Zenaida asiaticaWhite-winged Dove
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
Plant details
- Family
- Agavaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 6a–9b
- Soil pH
- Alkaline
- Flower color
- Yellow or green
What its natural habitat tells you
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Flower color · “Yellow or green” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Hardiness · “Zones 6a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
- Height · “3–6 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Evergreen” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ)
- Soil · “Occasionally dry; Very dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ)
- Soil pH · “Alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “3–4 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Agave; Agave virginica; Eastern False aloe; False Aloe; Rattle Snake Master
Conservation status
| Florida rank | S3 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | 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)
- 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