Pennsylvania Everlasting

Gamochaeta pensylvanica

Found in fields, roadsides, pastures, disturbed areas. 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 71%

Height: Up to about 20 inches
Light: Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to moist

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At a glance

Life cycle: Annual
Bloom: March to July

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Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 11 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

5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Gnaphalium

Vanessa virginiensisAmerican Lady
Sparganothis unifascianaOne-Lined Sparganothis
Tebenna gnaphaliellaEverlasting Tebenna
Trichordestra legitimaStriped Garden Caterpillar Moth
Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite

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: Asteraceae
Flower color: Purple

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

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “March to July” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “Purple” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Height · “Up to about 20 inches” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Life cycle · “Annual” · 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
primary_flower_color · “purple” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Also known as

Gnaphalium purpureum var. spathulatum; Pennsylvania Cudweed

Conservation status

Virginia rank	S5?
Global rank	G5
VA status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

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