Spoonleaf Sundew
Drosera intermedia
Found in pine savannas, ditches, pocosins, margins of pools or streams, often in standing water. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- 1–3 inches
- Spread
- 1–3 inches
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Moist to standing water
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
- June to September
Not yet recorded · Leaves
Recorded in 8 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

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 106 animals.
- Common NighthawkChordeiles minor
- Common TernSterna hirundo
- Common YellowthroatGeothlypis trichas
- Cooper's HawkAccipiter cooperii
- DunlinCalidris alpina
- Eastern Brown PelicanPelecanus occidentalis carolinensis
- Eurasian WigeonAnas penelope
- European StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Fish CrowCorvus ossifragus
- Forster's TernSterna forsteri
- Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreus
- Glossy IbisPlegadis falcinellus
- Great Black-backed GullLarus marinus
- Great Blue HeronArdea herodias
- Great EgretArdea alba
- Great Horned OwlBubo virginianus
- Greater ScaupAythya marila
- Green HeronButorides virescens
- Henslow's SparrowAmmodramus henslowii
- Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus
- KilldeerCharadrius vociferus
- King RailRallus elegans
- Laughing GullLeucophaeus atricilla
- Least BitternIxobrychus exilis
Who uses this plant?
1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Drosera
- Hemipachnobia monochromateaSundew Dart
1BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Drosera
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 4.0No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Droseraceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 4a–9b
- Soil pH
- Acidic
- Flower color
- Pink, red or white
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “June to September” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Pink, red or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Hardiness · “Zones 4a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1–3 inches” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Minnesota Wildflowers differ)
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Soil · “Frequent standing water; Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Acidic” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “1–3 inches” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Spoon Leaf Sundew
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S3 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Virginia DCR Natural Heritage rare plant list
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- 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

























