States
North CarolinaTennesseeGeorgiaSouth CarolinaKentuckyAlabamaFloridaVirginia
Menu

Smooth Small-leaf Tick-trefoil

Desmodium marilandicum

Found in fields, woodland borders, disturbed areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

68
Strong

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

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 4 feet
Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to moist
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
June to September
Fruiting season
August to October

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 77 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 2

Forest edges and thickets

Wooded scene looking out over partially open fields
Named place / source context. Shown: Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, Georgia and Tennessee; which part is not recorded, a neighboring state.Wooded scene looking out over partially open fields, Richard Schlecht, undated. Public domain. Source record.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

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

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 79 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

23CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Desmodium

  • Epargyreus clarusSilver-spotted Skipper
  • Aristotelia roseosuffusellaPink-Washed Aristotelia
  • Brenthia pavonacellaPeacock Brenthia Moth
  • Caloptilia violacellaTick-Trefoil Caloptilia
  • Cecropterus bathyllusSouthern Cloudywing
  • Cecropterus lyciadesHoary Edge
  • Cecropterus pyladesNorthern Cloudywing
  • Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
  • Coelostathma discopunctanaThe Batman Moth
  • Cupido comyntasEastern Tailed-Blue
Show all 23
  • Dasylophia anguinaBlack-Spotted Prominent
  • Exelastis pumilioDwarf Plume Moth
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
  • Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
  • Pyrrhia ciliscaAmerican Bordered Sallow, Noble Sun Moth
  • Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
  • Triclonella pergandeellaSweetclover Root Borer, Bush-Clover Triclonella
  • Urbanus proteusLong-Tailed Skipper, Bean Leaf Roller
  • Cosmopterix lespedezae
  • Grapholita fana
  • Porphyrosela desmodiella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
15BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Desmodium

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
3BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
  • Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
  • Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
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

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Fabaceae
Flower color
White, pink or purple
Fruit begins
August
Fruit ends
October

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

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “June to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “White, pink or purple” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Fruit begins · “August” · 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
  • Height · “Up to about 4 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as

Maryland Tick Trefoil; Smooth Small Leaf Tick Trefoil

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

Sources