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Apple-of-Peru

Nicandra physalodes

Found in disturbed places, such as cultivated fields and roadsides. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

—
Not native

Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 47%

Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Leaves
Deciduous

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Bloom

Bloom: recorded only in the FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team) phone app (app page).

Height and spread: no source found yet.

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 23 Virginia counties.

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

5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Nicandra

  • Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
  • Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
  • Manduca sextaCarolina Sphinx, Tomatoe Sphinx, Tobacco Hornworm
  • Spodoptera dolichosSweetpotato Armyworm, Dolichos Armyworm, Large Cotton Armyworm
  • Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Solanaceae
Hardiness
Zones 7a–10b
Flower color
Blue or white

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Apple Of Peru

Conservation status

Virginia rankSNA
Global rankGNR
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources