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Anglestem Primrose-willow

Ludwigia leptocarpa

Found in riverbanks, marshes, swamps, and ditches, often on logs or tree bases in deep swamps. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

53
Strong

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

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 8 feet
Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Moist to standing water
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Bloom
June to October

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 31 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 4

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina
Named place / source context. Shown: Great Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, as titled by Museum of Fine Arts Boston; nineteenth-century artistic interpretation, a neighboring state.View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, Regis Francois Gignoux, 1850. Public domain. Source record.

Freshwater marshes

Open, herb-covered wetlands with fresh, non-tidal water.

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

5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Ludwigia

  • Elophila gyralisWaterlily Borer Moth
  • Eudryas unioPearly Wood-Nymph
  • Junonia coeniaCommon Buckeye
  • Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
  • Parapoynx seminealisFloating-Heart Waterlilly Moth, Waterlily Casebearer
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
32BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Ludwigia

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
4BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Aix sponsaWood Duck
  • Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
  • Gallinula galeataCommon Gallinule
  • Porzana carolinaSora
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
Onagraceae
Flower color
Yellow

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Angle Stem Primrose Willow; Anglestem Primrose willow

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4
Global rankG5
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