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Annual Bluegrass

Poa annua

Found in fields, roadsides, gardens, lawns, disturbed areas. 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 76%

Height
About 3.6 inches
Light
Partial shade
Soil moisture
Dry to moist

At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Bloom
Mid spring
Fruiting season
Spring to summer

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 97 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

39CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Poa

  • Acrolophus popeanellaClemen's Grass Tubeworm
  • Agrotis gladiariaSwordsman Dart, Clay-Backed Cut-Worm
  • Amblyscirtes hegonPepper and Salt Skipper
  • Amblyscirtes vialisCommon Roadside-Skipper, Black Little Skipper
  • Ancyloxypha numitorLeast Skipper
  • Anicla infectaGreen Cutworm Moth
  • Apamea devastatorGlassy Borer, Glassy Cutworm Moth
  • Arugisa luteaCommon Arugisa
  • Atalopedes huronSachem
  • Cercyonis pegalaCommon Wood Nymph
Show all 39
  • Chrysoteuchia topiariusCranberry Girder, Subterranean Webworm, Topiary Grass-Veneer
  • Feltia jaculiferaDingy Cutworm
  • Fissicrambus mutabilisStriped Webworm, Striped Sodworm, Changeable Grass-Veneer
  • Hesperia leonardusLeonard's Skipper, Blazing Star Skipper, Pawnee Prairie Skipper, Pawnee Montane Skipper
  • Hylephila phyleusFiery Skipper
  • Lacinipolia meditataThe Thinker
  • Lerodea eufalaEufala Skipper, Gray Skipper, Rice Leafroller
  • Leucania phragmitidicolaNeedle Wainscot, Phragmites Wainscot
  • Leucania subpunctataWhite-Dotted Wainscot, Forage Armyworm
  • Limochores mysticLong Dash
  • Lon hobomokHobomok Skipper
  • Lon zabulonZabulon Skipper
  • Macrochilo litophoraAngulate Fan-Foot, Brown-Lined Owlet
  • Marimatha nigrofimbriaBlack-Bordered Lemon
  • Megisto cymelaLittle Wood Satyr
  • Mythimna unipunctaArmyworm Moth, White Speck
  • Nephelodes miniansBronzed Cutworm
  • Nomophila nearcticaLucerne Moth, American Celery Webworm
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Parapediasia teterrellusBluegrass Webworm
  • Pediasia trisectaSod Webworm Moth, Larger Sod Webworm
  • Phalaenostola larentioidesBlack-Banded Owlet, Black-Banded Phalaenostola
  • Phalaenostola metonalisPale Epidelta, Pale Phalaenostola
  • Polites corasPeck's Skipper, Yellow-Patch Skipper
  • Polites themistoclesTawny-Edged Skipper
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Elachista illectella
  • Gonioterma mistrella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
9BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Anser caerulescensSnow Goose
  • Branta canadensisCanada Goose
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Pooecetes gramineusVesper Sparrow
  • Spizella breweriBrewer's Sparrow
  • Spizella passerinaChipping Sparrow
  • Spizella pusillaField Sparrow
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
Poaceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–8b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
White
Growth rate
Rapid
Growth habit
Grows in clumps
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Spring
Fruit ends
Summer

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

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “Mid spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Flower color · “White” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “Spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth habit · “Grows in clumps” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 4a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “About 3.6 inches” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Life cycle · “Annual” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as

Poanna Grass

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