Narrowleaf Gumweed

Grindelia lanceolata

Found in limestone glades, limestone barrens, Black Belt chalk outcrops; also disturbed areas (roadsides, railroad beds, waste areas around wool-combing mills). FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

—

Not native

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

Profile 76%

Height: Up to about 5 feet
Spread: 1.5–2 feet
Light: Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to moist

Grindelia lanceolata — bloom photograph — (c) Michelle W. （鍾偉瑋）, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original photograph

At a glance

Life cycle: Biennial or perennial
Bloom: June to September

JFMAMJJASOND

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 2 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 3

Limestone cedar glade. Shown: Pennyroyal Plain, Simpson County, Kentucky, a neighboring state.Cedar glade in the Pennyroyal Plain, Simpson County, Mason Brock (Masebrock), undated. Public domain. Source record.

Rock outcrop on a mountain summit. Shown: Sassafras Mountain, on the North Carolina and South Carolina line, a neighboring state.Sassafras Mountain rock outcrop, Alan M. Cressler / U.S. Geological Survey, undated. Public domain. Source record. Faithful JPEG display decode of embedded JP2; no AI or color enhancement. Phone derivative resized proportionally.

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

4CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Grindelia

Feltia jaculiferaDingy Cutworm
Heliothis phloxiphagaSpotted Straw Sun Moth, Darker Spotted Straw Moth
Homoeosoma electellaSunflower Moth
Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller

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

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

29Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Grindelia

Andrena canadensis
Andrena chromotricha
Andrena hirticincta
Andrena runcinatae
Ashmeadiella bucconis
Calliopsis coloradensis
Colletes rufocinctus
Dianthidium simile
Dieunomia nevadensis
Megachile parallela

Show all 29

Melissodes confusus
Melissodes coreopsis
Melissodes druriellus
Melissodes lutulentus
Melissodes menuachus
Melissodes pallidisignatus
Melissodes subagilis
Melissodes trinodis
Melissodes wheeleri
Perdita albipennis
Perdita bruneri
Perdita ignota
Perdita perpulchra
Perdita prionopsidis
Perdita swenki
Perdita xanthismae
Protandrena aestivalis
Protandrena piercei
Protandrena simulans

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

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

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

Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
Centrocercus urophasianusGreater Sage-Grouse

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Asteraceae
Hardiness: Zones 4–8
Flower color: Yellow

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

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “June to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “Yellow” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Hardiness · “Zones 4–8” · Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
Height · “Up to about 5 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
Life cycle · “Biennial or perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Light · “Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
primary_flower_color · “yellow” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Spread · “1.5–2 feet” · Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder

Conservation status

Virginia rank	SNA
Global rank	G4
VA status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden