Chamber-bitter

Emblica urinaria

Found in gardens, roadsides, and other disturbed ground, apparently preferring nitrogen-rich or fertilized soils. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 41%

Light: Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to wet

Emblica urinaria — fruit photograph — (c) scallions, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original photograph

At a glance

Life cycle: Annual

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Leaves · Bloom

Bloom: recorded only in the FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team) phone app (app page).

Height, spread and leaves: no source found yet.

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 14 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

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

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Phyllanthus

Cacotherapia unipuncta

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

—Specialist beesPollen specialists

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Phyllanthaceae
Hardiness: Zones 7a–10b
Flower color: Yellow, green or white

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

Growing sources and scope

Flower color · “Yellow, green or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Hardiness · “Zones 7a–10b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Life cycle · “Annual” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil · “Dry; Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Also known as

Chamber bitter; Phyllanthus urinaria; leaf flower; leaf-flower

Conservation status

Virginia rank	Not available
Global rank	GNR
VA status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden