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Cultivated Rye

Secale cereale

Found in fields; commonly cultivated, uncommonly persistent or volunteering after cultivation. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Mississippi. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 82%

Height
2–4 feet
Spread
6 inches–1 foot
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Somewhat dry to moist
See native alternatives

Plant this instead

Choose your county to list local plants first.

  • Ravenfoot Sedge
    Carex crus-corvi

    Sun: Part to full shade. Soil: Average to moist. Flowers: Green.

    Similar growth form, height, evergreen or deciduous

  • Fringed Sedge
    Carex crinita

    Sun: Part shade. Soil: Moist to wet. Flowers: Green.

    Similar growth form, height, evergreen or deciduous

  • Bush's Sedge
    Carex bushii

    Sun: Partial shade, Full sun. Soil: Dry to moist. Flowers: Green.

    Similar growth form, evergreen or deciduous, bloom season

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At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Bloom
May to July
Fruiting season
Spring to summer

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 6 Mississippi counties.

Natural habitats

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

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

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

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

10CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS

Genus host records with ranges including MS · Secale

  • Acronicta insularisHenry's Marsh Moth, Cattail Caterpillar
  • Dargida diffusaWheat Head Armywotm Moth
  • Elaphria nucicoloraSugarcane Midget, Sugarcane Moth
  • Feltia jaculiferaDingy Cutworm
  • Fissicrambus mutabilisStriped Webworm, Striped Sodworm, Changeable Grass-Veneer
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
  • Mythimna unipunctaArmyworm Moth, White Speck
  • Nola cereellaSorghum Cutworm, Sorghum Webworm Moth, Sorgham Webworm Moth
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
6BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Agelaius phoeniceusRed-winged Blackbird
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Euphagus cyanocephalusBrewer's Blackbird
  • Molothrus aterBrown-headed Cowbird
  • Phasianus colchicusRing-necked Pheasant
  • Sturnus vulgarisEuropean Starling
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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Poaceae
Soil pH
Neutral
Flower color
Green
Growth rate
Rapid
Growth habit
Grows in clumps
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Spring
Fruit ends
Summer

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Rye

Conservation status

Mississippi rankSNA
Global rankGNR
MS statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Sources