Curly Dock
Rumex crispus
-30
Harmful
Not native to Louisiana. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 65%
- Height
- 1–5 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
Do not plant. Listed invasive in Louisiana.
Plant this instead
Choose your county to list local plants first.
No recorded swaps for this county. Try the garden finder.
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
Not yet recorded · Spread · Bloom
Recorded in 60 Louisiana parishes.
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
37CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including LA
Genus host records with ranges including LA · Rumex
- Achyra rantalisGarden Webworm Moth
- Agnorisma badinodisPale-Banded Dart
- Agrotis gladiariaSwordsman Dart, Clay-Backed Cut-Worm
- Anavitrinella pampinariaCommon Gray, Cranberry Spanworm
- Apantesis argeArge Tiger Moth
- Apantesis naisNais Tiger Moth
- Argyrogramma verrucaGolden Looper
- Calothysanis amaturariaCross-Lined Wave
- Chionodes discoocellellaEyeringed Chionodes
- Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
Show all 37
- Chlorochlamys chloroleucariaBlackberry Looper Moth
- Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Feltia jaculiferaDingy Cutworm
- Hahncappsia mancalisCommon Hahncappsia
- Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
- Lacinipolia renigeraBristly Ground Cat, Bristly Cutworm Moth, Kidney Spotted "Mamestra"
- Leuconycta lepidulaMarble-Green Jaspidia, Marble-Green Leuconycta
- Mythimna unipunctaArmyworm Moth, White Speck
- Nymphalis antiopaMourning Cloak
- Olethreutes fasciatanaBanded Olethreutes
- Orthodes majusculaRustic Quaker, Rustic Groundcat
- Orthonama obstipataThe Gem
- Papaipema baptisiaeWild Indigo Borer, Indigo Stem Borer
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
- Pseudeustrotia carneolaPink-Barred Lithacodia, Pink-Barred Pseudeustrotia
- Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
- Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
- Sunira bicoloragoBicolored Sallow
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
- Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
26BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Rumex
- Alectoris chukarChukar
- Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
- Aythya affinisLesser Scaup
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
- Dendragapus obscurusDusky Grouse
- Haemorhous mexicanusHouse Finch
- Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
- Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
Show all 26
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Melospiza melodiaSong Sparrow
- Melozone crissalisCalifornia Towhee
- Oreortyx pictusMountain Quail
- Pheucticus melanocephalusBlack-headed Grosbeak
- Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
- Pipilo maculatusSpotted Towhee
- Plectrophenax nivalisSnow Bunting
- Sialia mexicanaWestern Bluebird
- Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
- Spinus psaltriaLesser Goldfinch
- Spizella passerinaChipping Sparrow
- Spizella pusillaField Sparrow
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
- Zonotrichia atricapillaGolden-crowned Sparrow
- Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
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
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Polygonaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 4a–8b
- Flower color
- Brown/copper, 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 · “Brown/copper, yellow or green” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Hardiness · “Zones 4a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1–5 feet” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- 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
- Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Yellow Dock
Conservation status
| Louisiana rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | GNR |
| LA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- NatureServe Explorer
- USDA PLANTS
- Louisiana occurrence source
- 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