Small-leaved Meadow-rue
Thalictrum macrostylum
Found in glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock; freshwater tidal marshes; seeps and springs. 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 88%
- Height
- Up to about 6 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to wet
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- May to August
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 3 Florida counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock
Open, thin-soil openings, outcrops and cliffs on dark, magnesium- or iron-rich rock such as serpentine, diabase or gabbro.
Marshes along tidal rivers where the water is fresh but rises and falls with the tide.
Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 181 animals.
- Long-billed CurlewNumenius americanus
- Long-billed DowitcherLimnodromus scolopaceus
- Louisiana WaterthrushSeiurus motacilla
- Mississippi KiteIctinia mississippiensis
- Nelson's Sharp-tailed SparrowAmmodramus nelsoni
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Northern Saw-whet OwlAegolius acadicus
- Northern WaterthrushSeiurus noveboracensis
- Orchard OrioleIcterus spurius
- OvenbirdSeiurus aurocapilla
- Palm WarblerDendroica palmarum
- Pied-billed GrebePodilymbus podiceps
- Pileated WoodpeckerDryocopus pileatus
- Purple MartinProgne subis
- Red KnotCalidris canutus
- Red-bellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinus
- Red-headed WoodpeckerMelanerpes erythrocephalus
- Red-throated LoonGavia stellata
- Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
- Ruby-crowned KingletRegulus calendula
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed SparrowAmmodramus caudacutus
- Savannah SparrowPasserculus sandwichensis
Who uses this plant?
5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL
Genus host records with ranges including FL · Thalictrum
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
- Papilio cresphontesEastern Giant Swallowtail
- Xanthotype sospetaCrocus Geometer
- Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
1BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Thalictrum
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
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Thalictrum
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
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
- Ranunculaceae
- Flower color
- White or green
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “May to August” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “White or green” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Height · “Up to about 6 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Partial shade; Full shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Small leaved Meadow rue
Conservation status
| Florida rank | Not available |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G3G4 |
| 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), Carolinas & Georgia edition
- 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

























