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Clasping-leaf St. John's-wort

Hypericum gymnanthum

Found in pine savannas, wet pine flatwoods, sinkhole ponds (Augusta and Rockingham counties, VA), other wet to moist habitats. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

69
Strong

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

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 28 inches
Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to wet
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
June to September

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 41 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

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.

Sinkhole ponds

Ponds and wet depressions in limestone sinkholes of the interior valleys and plateaus (karst), separate from the Coastal Plain's limesink ponds.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

22CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Hypericum

  • Acleris maculidorsanaStained-Back Leafroller Moth
  • Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Hyppa xylinoidesCommon Hyppa
  • Iodopepla u-albumBurgundy St. Johnswort Moth, White-Eyed Borer
  • Iridopsis ephyrariaPale-Winged Gray
  • Melanchra assimilisBlack Arches
  • Nedra ramosulaGray Half-Spot
  • Nemoria bistriariaTwo-Striped Emerald, Red-Fringed Emerald
  • Nemoria tuscaroraAppalachian Emerald
Show all 22
  • Phlogophora irisOlive Angle Shades
  • Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
  • Probole amicariaFriendly Probole
  • Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
  • Synchlora aerataWavy-Lined Emerald, Camouflaged Looper
  • Tallula watsoniWatson's Tallula
  • Xestia c-nigrumSpotted Cut-Worm, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Lesser Black-letter Dart
  • Zale lunataLunate Zale
  • Agonopterix hyperella
  • Agonopterix lythrella
  • Coleotechnites nigritus
  • Xenotemna pallorana
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
43BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Hypericum

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
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Aythya collarisRing-necked Duck
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
Hypericaceae
Flower color
Orange or 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 · “Orange or yellow” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Height · “Up to about 28 inches” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · 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
  • Soil · “Dry; Moist; Wet (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as

Clasping Leaf St. Johnswort; Clasping leaf St. John's wort

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4
Global rankG4
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources