Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including SC
Genus host records with ranges including SC · Ruellia
- Junonia coeniaCommon Buckeye
- Anthanassa texanaTexan Crescent
- Tripudia rectangulaWild Petunia Seed Moth, Rectangular Tripudia
13BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Ruellia
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 claimNo records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Acanthaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 5–8
- Flower color
- Purple
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Growth habit
- Single stem
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “Early spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Flower color · “Purple” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Single stem” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Hardiness · “Zones 5–8” · Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
- Height · “1–3 feet” · Tennessee Smart Yards · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- Light · “Part shade” · Tennessee Smart Yards · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- primary_flower_color · “purple” · USDA PLANTS
- Soil · “moderately wet to medium” · Tennessee Smart Yards · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
- Spread · “1–1.5 feet” · Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
Also known as
Limestone Wild Petunia; Smooth Wild petunia
Conservation status
| South Carolina rank | Not available |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G4G5 |
| SC status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
In your garden
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Sources
- tnky_atlas
- usda
- nc_flora
- South Carolina 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