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Portuguese Daisy

Leucanthemum lacustre

Found in old fields, ditches, 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 53%

Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to wet

At a glance

Bloom
June to July

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

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.

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

29CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Chrysanthemum

  • Anicla infectaGreen Cutworm Moth
  • Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
  • Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
  • Clepsis peritanaGarden Tortrix
  • Condica sutorThe Cobbler, Cobbler Groundling
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Herpetogramma thestealisZigzag Herpetogramma, Subtle-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Homoeosoma electellaSunflower Moth
  • Lascoria ambigualisAmbiguous Moth, Ambiguous Litter Moth
  • Orthonama obstipataThe Gem
Show all 29
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Platynota rostranaOmnivorous Platynota
  • Pseudorthodes vecorsSmall Brown Quaker, Small Brown Groundcat
  • Pyrrhia exprimensPurple-Lined Sallow, Purple-Lined Sun Moth
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
  • Spoladea recurvalisHawaiian Beet Webworm
  • Synchlora aerataWavy-Lined Emerald, Camouflaged Looper
  • Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
  • Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
  • Udea rubigalisCelery Leaftier
  • Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite
  • Xanthotype sospetaCrocus Geometer
  • Xanthotype urticariaFalse Crocus Geometer
  • Xestia elimataSouthern Variable Dart, Southern Pine Dart
  • Pelochrista argentialbana
  • Pelochrista zomonana
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
3Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Leucanthemum

  • Dianthidium simile
  • Osmia coloradensis
  • Protandrena illinoiensis
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
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • 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

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

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “June to July” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • 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

Chrysanthemum lacustre

Conservation status

Virginia rankSNA
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources