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Bitter Panicgrass

Panicum amarum

48
Good

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

Profile 94%

Height
3–4 feet
Spread
2–3 feet
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to moist

Space about 2.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 16 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Bloom
Mid summer
Fruiting season
Summer to fall

Not yet recorded · Life cycle · Leaves

Recorded in 26 Florida counties.

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 93 animals.

All wildlife of Florida

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

21CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Panicum

  • Anatrytone loganDelaware Skipper, Logan Skipper, Black-Vein Skipper
  • Ancyloxypha numitorLeast Skipper
  • Dargida diffusaWheat Head Armywotm Moth
  • Dargida rubripennisThe Pink-Streak
  • Hesperia attalusDotted Skipper
  • Hylephila phyleusFiery Skipper
  • Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
  • Lerema acciusClouded Skipper, Corn Leaf tier
  • Leucania adjutaAdjutant Wainscot
  • Leucania linitaReed Wainscot, Linen Wainscot
Show all 21
  • Marimatha nigrofimbriaBlack-Bordered Lemon
  • Mocis latipesSmall Mocis, Striped Grass Looper
  • Mocis texanaTexas Mocis
  • Mythimna unipunctaArmyworm Moth, White Speck
  • Panoquina ocolaOcola Skipper, Long-Winged Skiiper
  • Poanes viatorBroad-Winged Skipper
  • Polites egeremetNorthern Broken-Dash
  • Polites themistoclesTawny-Edged Skipper
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Elachista solitaria
  • Idioglossa miraculosa
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
35BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Acanthis flammeaCommon Redpoll
  • Agelaius phoeniceusRed-winged Blackbird
  • Aix sponsaWood Duck
  • Anas creccaGreen-winged Teal
  • Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
  • Anthus spragueiiSprague's Pipit
  • Aythya collarisRing-necked Duck
  • Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
  • Calcarius ornatusChestnut-collared Longspur
  • Calcarius pictusSmith's Longspur
Show all 35
  • Callipepla gambeliiGambel's Quail
  • Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
  • Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
  • Contopus virensEastern Wood-Pewee
  • Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
  • Dendrocygna bicolorFulvous Whistling-Duck
  • Dolichonyx oryzivorusBobolink
  • Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
  • Gallinula galeataCommon Gallinule
  • Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
  • Mareca streperaGadwall
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Molothrus aterBrown-headed Cowbird
  • Passer domesticusHouse Sparrow
  • Peucaea aestivalisBachman's Sparrow
  • Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting
  • Pooecetes gramineusVesper Sparrow
  • Porzana carolinaSora
  • Quiscalus quisculaCommon Grackle
  • Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
  • Spizella passerinaChipping Sparrow
  • Spizella pusillaField Sparrow
  • Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
  • Xanthocephalus xanthocephalusYellow-headed Blackbird
  • Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
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
Hardiness
Zones 2a–9b
Flower color
Pink
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Grows in clumps
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Summer
Fruit ends
Fall

What its natural habitat tells you

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

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “Mid summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Flower color · “Pink” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth habit · “Grows in clumps” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 2a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “3–4 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Virginia DCR Coastal Plain differs)
  • Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry; Very dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Virginia DCR Coastal Plain differs)
  • Spread · “2–3 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Florida rankS4S5
Global rankG5
FL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources