Nestronia
Nestronia umbellula
Found in relatively moist sites in sandhills in the upper Coastal Plain, moist to dry Piedmont and montane oak forests. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 71%
- Height
- Up to about 4 feet
- Light
- Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry to moist
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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
- Perennial
- Bloom
- April to June
- Fruiting season
- July to early September
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 6 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Dry, deep-sand ridges with longleaf pine and turkey oak, kept open by fire.
Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 117 animals.
- American RedstartSetophaga ruticilla
- American WoodcockScolopax minor
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Black-throated Blue WarblerDendroica caerulescens
- Blue-headed VireoVireo solitarius
- Blue-winged WarblerVermivora pinus
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Brown-headed NuthatchSitta pusilla
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Eastern BluebirdSialia sialis
- Golden-winged WarblerVermivora chrysoptera
- Gray CatbirdDumetella carolinensis
- Hermit ThrushCatharus guttatus
- Hooded WarblerWilsonia citrina
- Kentucky WarblerOporornis formosus
- Long-eared OwlAsio otus
- Northern BobwhiteColinus virginianus
- Red-breasted NuthatchSitta canadensis
- Red-headed WoodpeckerMelanerpes erythrocephalus
- Scarlet TanagerPiranga olivacea
- Spotted SandpiperActitis macularius
- Swainson's WarblerLimnothlypis swainsonii
- White-winged CrossbillLoxia leucoptera
- Wood ThrushHylocichla mustelina
Who uses this plant?
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Santalaceae
- Flower color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- July
- Fruit ends
- Early September
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “April to June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Fruit begins · “July” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “Early September” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Height · “Up to about 4 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Partial shade; Full shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- primary_flower_color · “green” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Conjurers Nut; Leech Brush
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S1 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G4 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Virginia DCR Natural Heritage rare plant list
- 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

























