Trifoliate Orange
Citrus trifoliata
Found in bottomland and riparian forests, moist upland forests, stream banks, spring runs, fencerows, roadsides, becoming common especially in suburban areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- 8–20 feet
- Spread
- 6–15 feet
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry to wet
Do not plant. Listed invasive in Virginia.
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- March to June
- Fruiting season
- September to October
Recorded in 26 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Floodplain and bottomland forests
Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Who uses this plant?
37CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Citrus
- Acharia stimuleaSaddleback Caterpillar Moth
- Agrotis ipsilonIpsilon Dart, Black Cutworm, Greasy Cutworm
- Amphion floridensisNessus Sphinx
- Anatrachyntis badiaFlorida Pink Scavanger Caterpillar
- Anatrachyntis rileyiPink Scavanger Caterpillar
- Anavitrinella pampinariaCommon Gray, Cranberry Spanworm
- Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
- Argyrotaenia kimballiKimball's Leafroller Moth
- Automeris ioIo Moth
- Clepsis peritanaGarden Tortrix
Show all 37
- Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
- Euclea delphiniiSpiny Oak-Slug Moth
- Harrisina americanaGrapeleaf Skeletonizer Moth
- Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
- Homoeosoma electellaSunflower Moth
- Hypercompe scriboniaGiant Leopard Moth, Great Leopard Moth
- Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
- Hypocala andremonaHypocala Moth
- Marmara salictellaWillow Stem Miner
- Megalopyge opercularisSouthern Flannel Moth, Puss Caterpillar
- Melanchra pictaPainted Arches, Zebra Caterpillar Moth
- Oiketicus abbotiiAbbot's Bagworm Moth
- Papilio cresphontesEastern Giant Swallowtail
- Phobetron pitheciumHag Moth, Monkey Slug
- Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
- Platynota idaeusalisTufted Apple-Bud Moth
- Platynota rostranaOmnivorous Platynota
- Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
- Prolimacodes badiaSkiff Moth, Skiff Caterpillar
- Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
- Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
- Tallula watsoniWatson's Tallula
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Urodus parvulaBumelia Webworm
- Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Citrus
- Zenaida asiaticaWhite-winged Dove
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
Plant details
- Family
- Rutaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 5a–9b
- Soil pH
- Acidic
- Flower color
- White
- Fruit begins
- September
- Fruit ends
- October
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “March to June” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “White” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Fruit begins · “September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Hardiness · “Zones 5a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “8–20 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- primary_flower_color · “white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Dry; Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil pH · “Acidic” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “6–15 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Poncirus trifoliata
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | GNR |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- Virginia DCR invasive plant list
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- NatureServe Explorer
- 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