Carolina Buckthorn
Frangula caroliniana
Found in dry to moist barrens, woodlands, and forests, Coastal Plain limestone bluffs and shell middens, especially over mafic or calcareous rocks. 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
- 10–15 feet
- Spread
- 10–15 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Usually moist
Space about 12.5 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- May to June
- Fruiting season
- Summer to fall
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.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone
Glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock
Open, thin-soil openings, outcrops and cliffs on dark, magnesium- or iron-rich rock such as serpentine, diabase or gabbro.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 81 animals.
- Northern CardinalCardinalis cardinalis
- Northern FlickerColaptes auratus
- Northern MockingbirdMimus polyglottos
- Northern Rough-winged SwallowStelgidopteryx serripennis
- Olive-sided FlycatcherContopus cooperi
- Orchard OrioleIcterus spurius
- OspreyPandion haliaetus
- Pileated WoodpeckerDryocopus pileatus
- Pine SiskinCarduelis pinus
- Prairie WarblerDendroica discolor
- Purple FinchCarpodacus purpureus
- Red-bellied WoodpeckerMelanerpes carolinus
- Red-headed WoodpeckerMelanerpes erythrocephalus
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Red-winged BlackbirdAgelaius phoeniceus
- Rose-breasted GrosbeakPheucticus ludovicianus
- Ruby-crowned KingletRegulus calendula
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Ruffed GrouseBonasa umbellus
- Sharp-shinned HawkAccipiter striatus
- Spotted SandpiperActitis macularius
- Summer TanagerPiranga rubra
- Tree SwallowTachycineta bicolor
- Tufted TitmouseBaeolophus bicolor
Who uses this plant?
18CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Rhamnus
- Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
- Argyrotaenia quercifolianaYellow-Winged Oak Leafroller Moth, Lined Oak Leafroller
- Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
- Eulia ministranaFerruginous Eulia
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Eupithecia misturataInsignificant Pug
- Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
- Iridopsis defectariaBrown-Shaded Gray, Willow Looper
- Lacanobia subjunctaSpeckled Arches, Subdues Arches, Harnessed Mamestra, Speckled Cutworm Moth, Grand Arches?(incorrectly)
- Melanolophia canadariaCanadian Melanolphia, Variable Redmarked Looper
Show all 18
- Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
- Palthis angulalisDark-Spotted Palthis
- Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
- Rhopobota naevanaBlackheaded Fireworm, Holly Bud Moth, Holly Tortrix
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Syndemis afflictanaFall Dead-Leaf Roller, Gray Leafroller, Black-and-Grey Banded Leafroller
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Triphosa haesitataTissue Moth, Brown Tissue
7BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Rhamnus
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
12BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Rhamnus
- Aphelocoma californicaCalifornia Scrub-Jay
- Campylorhynchus brunneicapillusCactus Wren
- Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
- Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
- Ixoreus naeviusVaried Thrush
- Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
- Patagioenas fasciataBand-tailed Pigeon
- Sphyrapicus ruberRed-breasted Sapsucker
- Toxostoma redivivumCalifornia Thrasher
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
Show all 12
- Tyrannus tyrannusEastern Kingbird
- 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
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Rhamnaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 5a–9b
- Soil pH
- Alkaline
- Flower color
- Cream or green
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Growth habit
- Single crown
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Fall
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “May to June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Cream or green” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Single crown” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Hardiness · “Zones 5a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “10–15 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
- 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); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Moist” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “10–15 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Rhamnus caroliniana; buckthorn
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), Florida edition
- 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