Matted Sandmat
Euphorbia serpens
Found in dry sandy hammocks, disturbed uplands. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 71%
- Height
- 1–2 inches
- Spread
- 2–18 inches
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Dry to average

At a glance
- Life cycle
- Annual
Not yet recorded · Leaves · Bloom
Bloom: recorded only in the FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team) phone app (app page).
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 2 Virginia counties.
Who uses this plant?
8CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Euphorbia
- Automeris ioIo Moth
- Episimus argutanaSumac Leaftier
- Eudryas unioPearly Wood-Nymph
- Eutrapela clematariaCurved-Tooth Geometer, Purplish Brown Looper
- Hypercompe scriboniaGiant Leopard Moth, Great Leopard Moth
- Lobocleta plemyrariaStraight-Lined Wave
- Pygarctia abdominalisYellow-Edged Pygarctia
- Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
14BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Euphorbia
- Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
- Anthus spragueiiSprague's Pipit
- Calcarius pictusSmith's Longspur
- Callipepla gambeliiGambel's Quail
- Cardinalis cardinalisNorthern Cardinal
- Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
- Corvus brachyrhynchosAmerican Crow
- Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Pooecetes gramineusVesper Sparrow
Show all 14
- Spizella breweriBrewer's Sparrow
- Spizella pusillaField Sparrow
- Tympanuchus pallidicinctusLesser Prairie-Chicken
- Zenaida macrouraMourning 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
- Euphorbiaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 5a–11a
- Soil pH
- Acidic to alkaline
- Flower color
- Green or white
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Flower color · “Green or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Hardiness · “Zones 5a–11a” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1–2 inches” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Annual” · 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
- Soil · “Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Acidic to alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “2–18 inches” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Chamaesyce serpens; Roundleaf Sandmat
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | Not available |
|---|---|
| Global rank | Not available |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Native alternatives
Find natives for your gardenSources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- 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

