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Slender Spikegrass

Chasmanthium laxum

Found in savanna-pocosin ecotones, sandhill-pocosin ecotones, moist hardwood swamps, other moist habitats. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

35
Good

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

Profile 94%

Height
About 3.3 feet
Light
Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Moist to wet
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Bloom
May to October
Fruiting season
Summer to fall

Not yet recorded · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

Recorded in 64 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

Swamps

View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina
Named place / source context. Shown: Great Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, as titled by Museum of Fine Arts Boston; nineteenth-century artistic interpretation, a neighboring state.View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, Regis Francois Gignoux, 1850. Public domain. Source record.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 146 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

6CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Chasmanthium

  • Amblyscirtes hegonPepper and Salt Skipper
  • Amblyscirtes vialisCommon Roadside-Skipper, Black Little Skipper
  • Cyllopsis gemmaGemmed Satyr
  • Lerema acciusClouded Skipper, Corn Leaf tier
  • Lethe anthedonNorthern Pearly Eye
  • Lon zabulonZabulon Skipper
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
1BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Chasmanthium

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
Poaceae
Flower color
Green
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Spreads by rhizomes
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Summer
Fruit ends
Fall

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Slender Spike Grass; Slender Woodoats; Uniola laxa; oats

Conservation status

Virginia rankS5
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.

Choose a county to begin.

How to check your spot

Growing cautions

  • Spreads by rhizomes. USDA PLANTS lists its growth form as rhizomatous. USDA PLANTS

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources