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Goat's-rue

Tephrosia virginiana

Found in sandhills; forests and woodlands; cliffs, ledges and rocky summits; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), South Central edition What its natural habitat tells you

52
Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height
1–2 feet
Spread
9 inches–1.5 feet
Light
Deep shade, Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Dry to average

Space about 1 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 100 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
May to June
Fruiting season
July to October

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 55 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 4

Sandhills

Dry, deep-sand ridges with longleaf pine and turkey oak, kept open by fire.

Forests and woodlands

Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.

Cliffs, ledges and rocky summits

Cliffs, ledges, rock outcrops, talus and rocky summits where the source does not name the rock. A named rock files the place under its own glade or outcrop type instead.

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

8CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including MS

Genus host records with ranges including MS · Tephrosia

  • Cecropterus bathyllusSouthern Cloudywing
  • Cecropterus confusisConfusing Cloudywing, Confused Cloudy Wing
  • Cecropterus pyladesNorthern Cloudywing
  • Digrammia eremiataThree-Lined Angle
  • Mesophleps adustipennisSoybean Webworm Moth
  • Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
  • Phidotricha erigens
  • Ulophora groteii
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
30BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Tephrosia

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
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Fabaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Yellow or pink
Fruit begins
July
Fruit ends
October

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Catgut; Goat's rue; Goats Rue

Conservation status

Mississippi rankSNR
Global rankG5
MS statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources