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Lowland Beard Tongue

Penstemon alluviorum

Found in bottomland forests and fields. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

77
Strong

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

Profile 65%

Height
Up to about 3 feet
Soil moisture
Average to wet
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial

Not yet recorded · Spread · Light · Leaves · Bloom

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 7 Mississippi counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 2

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Mississippi. Shared habitat, not food. 73 animals.

Widespread birds also seen here (43)

Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.

All wildlife of Mississippi

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

8CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS

Genus host records with ranges including MS · Penstemon

  • Archirhoe neomexicanaNew Mexico Carpet
  • Elaphria chalcedoniaChalcedony Midget
  • Endothenia hebesanaVerbena Bud Moth
  • Euphydryas phaetonThe Baltimore, The Black Checker
  • Junonia coeniaCommon Buckeye
  • Pyrrhia ciliscaAmerican Bordered Sallow, Noble Sun Moth
  • Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
  • Stenoptilodes taprobanesNarrow Plume Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
46BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Penstemon

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
2Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Penstemon

  • Atoposmia abjecta
  • Osmia distincta
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
1BirdsRecorded eating Penstemon in Mississippi

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Mississippi, most records first.

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab)

Direct food only. 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

Birds that eat Penstemon 1

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Plantaginaceae
Flower color
White

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

Growing sources and scope

Conservation status

Mississippi rankSNR
Global rankNot available
MS statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Sources