Woolly Beach-heather
Hudsonia tomentosa
Found in dunes, sand flats, blowouts (in DE, NC, VA), high elevation quartzitic sandstone outcrops (in WV). Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
21
Good
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- About 1 foot
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- May to July
- Fruiting season
- August to September
JFMAMJJASOND
Not yet recorded · Spread
Recorded in 10 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 2
Granite and other acidic rock outcrops
Bare or thin-soil rock on granite, gneiss, sandstone, quartzite and similar acidic rock, including granite flatrocks and domes.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 33 animals.
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- Belted KingfisherMegaceryle alcyon
- Blue JayCyanocitta cristata
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Boat-tailed GrackleQuiscalus major
- Carolina ChickadeePoecile carolinensis
- Carolina WrenThryothorus ludovicianus
- Cooper's HawkAccipiter cooperii
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Eastern TowheePipilo erythrophthalmus
- Gray CatbirdDumetella carolinensis
- Hermit ThrushCatharus guttatus
- Hooded WarblerWilsonia citrina
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
- Northern CardinalCardinalis cardinalis
- Northern ParulaParula americana
- Orange-crowned WarblerVermivora celata
- OvenbirdSeiurus aurocapilla
- Pine SiskinCarduelis pinus
- Red-shouldered HawkButeo lineatus
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Ruby-crowned KingletRegulus calendula
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Rusty BlackbirdEuphagus carolinus
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Hudsonia
- Drasteria graphicaGraphic Moth, Coastal Graphic
- Chionodes franclemonti
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claimNo records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Cistaceae
- Flower color
- Yellow
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Growth habit
- Several stems
- Foliage color
- Gray-green
- Fruit begins
- August
- Fruit ends
- September
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “May to July” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Foliage color · “Gray-green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “August” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “September” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Growth habit · “Several stems” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Slow” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Height · “About 1 foot” · USDA PLANTS (ranked first; Minnesota Wildflowers differs) · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Leaf retention · “Deciduous” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Light · “Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- primary_flower_color · “yellow” · USDA PLANTS
- Soil · “Dry (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Woolly Beach heather
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S3S4 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
In your garden
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
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Sources
- 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), Carolinas & Georgia 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