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Sweet-gale

Myrica gale

Found in peaty bogs and fens. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

66
Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height
About 6 feet
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Moist to wet
Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
April to May
Fruiting season
August to September

Not yet recorded · Spread

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.

Mountain bogs and fens

Wet, open, peaty mountain wetlands fed by seepage, often with sphagnum moss.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 73 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

77CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Myrica

  • Acharia stimuleaSaddleback Caterpillar Moth
  • Acleris minutaLesser Apple Leaf Folder, Yellowheaded Fireworm
  • Acleris pulverosana"North American" Hasty Acleris
  • Acronicta impressaImpressive Dagger, Printed Dagger
  • Acronicta oblinitaSmeared Dagger
  • Adoneta spinuloidesPurple-Crested Slug
  • Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
  • Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
  • Autographa amplaLarge Looper Moth, Broken-Banded Y, Climbing Looper
  • Biston betulariaSalt-and-Pepper Geometer, Cleft-Headed Looper
Show all 77
  • Bucculatrix montanaMountain Bucculatrix
  • Caloptilia stigmatellaPoplar Caloptilia
  • Calycopis cecropsRed-Banded Hairstreak, Cecrops Hairstreak
  • Catocala antinymphaWayward Nymph, Sweetfern Underwing
  • Catocala consorsThe Consort
  • Catocala mulierculaThe Little Wife, Little Wife Underwing
  • Cecrita biundataWavy-Lined Heterocampa
  • Cenopis reticulatanaReticulated Fruitworm Moth
  • Cleora projectaProjecta Gray
  • Coelodasys apicalisPlain Schizura
  • Crocigrapha normaniNorman's Quaker
  • Cyclophora pendulinariaSweetfern Geometer
  • Episimus tyriusMaple Tip Borer
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Eupsilia morrisoniMorrison's Sallow
  • Eurois occultaGreat Grey Dart, Great Brocade
  • Eutrapela clematariaCurved-Tooth Geometer, Purplish Brown Looper
  • Hellinsia balanotesBaccharis Borer Plume Moth, Groundsel Plume Moth
  • Hypomecis buchholzariaX
  • Iridopsis defectariaBrown-Shaded Gray, Willow Looper
  • Kocakina fidelisIntractable Quaker, Green Fruitworm, Fourlined Green Fruitworm
  • Leptostales rubromarginariaDark-Ribboned Wave
  • Lycia ypsilonWoolly Gray
  • Megalopyge crispataBlack-Waved Flannel Moth, Crinkled Flannel Moth
  • Melanchra assimilisBlack Arches
  • Melanolophia canadariaCanadian Melanolphia, Variable Redmarked Looper
  • Morrisonia confusaConfused Woodgrain
  • Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
  • Nemoria bistriariaTwo-Striped Emerald, Red-Fringed Emerald
  • Nemoria mimosariaWhite-Fringed Emerald
  • Nemoria rubrifrontariaRed-Fronted Emerald
  • Oedemasia concinnaRed-Humped Caterpillar, Red-Humped Appleworm
  • Oiketicus abbotiiAbbot's Bagworm Moth
  • Olethreutes appendiceumServiceberry Leafroller
  • Olethreutes permundanaRaspberry Leafroller
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Orthotaenia undulanaDusky Leafroller
  • Palthis angulalisDark-Spotted Palthis
  • Pandemis limitataThree-Lined Leafroller Moth
  • Parasa chlorisSmaller Parasa, Green Slug Moth
  • Parasa indeterminaStinging Rose Caterpillar Moth, Rose Slug Caterpillar
  • Pero zalissariaCoastal Pero
  • Plagodis pulverariaAmerican Barred Umber, Barred Umber
  • Prochoerodes lineolaLarge Maple Spanworm Moth
  • Prolimacodes badiaSkiff Moth, Skiff Caterpillar
  • Protolampra brunneicollisBrown-Collared Dart
  • Rheumaptera hastataSpear-Marked Black Moth, Spear Mark
  • Rheumaptera subhastataWhite-Banded Black Moth
  • Sphinx kalmiaeFawn Sphinx, Laurel Sphinx
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Strepsicrates smithianaBayberry Leaftier
  • Tallula watsoniWatson's Tallula
  • Tetracis cachexiataWhite Slant-Line
  • Utetheisa ornatrixOrnate Moth, Pink Underwing, Rattlebox Moth, Bella Moth
  • Xanthotype urticariaFalse Crocus Geometer
  • Xestia dilucidaDull Reddish Dart, Reddish Heath Dart
  • Xestia normanianusNorman's Dart
  • Xylena nuperaRed Swordgrass Moth, American Swordgrass Moth, False Armyworm
  • Acleris kearfottana
  • Acleris maccana
  • Ancylis subaequana
  • Aroga argutiola
  • Cenopis karacana
  • Dichomeris bipunctellus
  • Olethreutes sericoranum
  • Olethreutes valdanum
  • Stigmella myricafoliella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
1BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Myrica

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 · Myrica

  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
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
Myricaceae
Flower color
Blue
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Several stems
Foliage color
Gray-green
Fruit begins
August
Fruit ends
September
Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Gale palustris; Sweet gale

Conservation status

Virginia rankS1
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources