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Pine Barren Gentian

Gentiana autumnalis

Found in pine savannas; pine flatwoods; sandhills. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

29
Good

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 82%

Height
8–18 inches
Spread
1–2 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 1.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 44 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial

Not yet recorded · Leaves · Bloom

Bloom: NC species account not read yet.

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 1 Virginia county.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 3

Pine savannas

Sandy Pine Savanna, Rush Featherling subtype
Sandy pine savanna. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Sandy Pine Savanna, Rush Featherling subtype, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

Pine flatwoods

Wet Pine Flatwoods, Shaken Creek Preserve - typical shrub layer
Wet pine flatwoods with a shrub layer. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Wet Pine Flatwoods, Shaken Creek Preserve - typical shrub layer, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

Sandhills

Dry, deep-sand ridges with longleaf pine and turkey oak, kept open by fire.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 114 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Gentiana

  • Endothenia hebesanaVerbena Bud Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
10BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Gentiana

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
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Gentiana

  • Calcarius lapponicusLapland Longspur
  • Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Gentianaceae
Hardiness
Zones 6a–8b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Blue
Growing sources and scope

Conservation status

Virginia rankS1
Global rankG3 [G4]
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Sources