Camphor Pluchea
Pluchea camphorata
Found in bottomland sloughs, clay flatwoods, other freshwater wetlands, also weedy in upland areas, particularly in sunny areas and following disturbance. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Mississippi (estimated). How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 94%
- Height
- Up to about 6 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Moist to standing water

At a glance
- Life cycle
- Annual
- Bloom
- August to October
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 67 Mississippi counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Floodplain and bottomland forests
Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.
Flat, sandy Coastal Plain pine woodlands, wetter than sandhills and denser than savannas.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Mississippi. Shared habitat, not food. 94 animals.
- Northern ShovelerAnas clypeata
- Northern WaterthrushSeiurus noveboracensis
- Orange-crowned WarblerVermivora celata
- Orchard OrioleIcterus spurius
- Pileated WoodpeckerDryocopus pileatus
- Purple GallinulePorphyrio martinica
- Red-breasted NuthatchSitta canadensis
- Red-shouldered HawkButeo lineatus
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Rusty BlackbirdEuphagus carolinus
- Seaside SparrowAmmodramus maritimus
- Swainson's WarblerLimnothlypis swainsonii
- Swallow-tailed KiteElanoides forficatus
- Tree SwallowTachycineta bicolor
- White IbisEudocimus albus
- White-eyed VireoVireo griseus
- White-throated SparrowZonotrichia albicollis
- White-winged DoveZenaida asiatica
- Wilson's PloverCharadrius wilsonia
- Wilson's WarblerWilsonia pusilla
- Wood StorkMycteria americana
- Yellow-throated WarblerDendroica dominica
Widespread birds also seen here (33)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- American Crow
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Robin
- Bald Eagle
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Chimney Swift
- Common Grackle
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Yellowthroat
- Cooper's Hawk
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eastern Towhee
- Eurasian Collared-dove
- European Starling
- Fish Crow
- Great Crested Flycatcher
- Great Horned Owl
- Hooded Merganser
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Osprey
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Turkey Vulture
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-crowned Night-heron
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
11CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS
Genus host records with ranges including MS · Pluchea
- Adaina ambrosiaeAmbrosia Plume Moth, Ragweed Plume Moth
- Adaina simpliciusThree-Dotted Plume Moth
- Condica cupentiaSplotched Groundling
- Dichomeris setosellaHairy Dichomeris
- Eublemma minimaEverlasting Bud Moth, Everlasting Eublemma
- Hellinsia balanotesBaccharis Borer Plume Moth, Groundsel Plume Moth
- Lioptilodes albistriolatusMousy Plume Moth
- Schinia arcigeraArcigera Flower Moth
- Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
- Xanthotype rufariaRufous Geometer
Show all 11
- Adaina bipunctatus
26BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Pluchea
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
9Specialist beesPollen specialists
Pollen specialists · Pluchea
- Andrena asteris
- Andrena hirticincta
- Colletes americanus
- Colletes compactus
- Colletes simulans
- Colletes speculiferus
- Dieunomia heteropoda
- Megachile xylocopoides
- Perdita octomaculata
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Flower color
- Pink or purple
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “August to October” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Pink or purple” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Height · “Up to about 6 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Annual” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Moist; Water; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Camphor Weed
Conservation status
| Mississippi rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| MS 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
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Mississippi 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























