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Wafer Ash; Hop Tree

Ptelea trifoliata var. mollis

Found in moist to dry forests, woodlands, and outcrops over calcareous or mafic substrates. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

37
Good

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

Profile 35%

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At a glance

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Light · Soil · Life cycle · Leaves · Bloom

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

Recorded in 2 Virginia counties and cities.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 5

Moist forests

Woods Scene
Harvey Joiner, Woods Scene: tall beeches in a moist Kentucky woodland, light falling through a closed canopy onto a damp forest floor. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Kentucky beech woods (Harvey Joiner, Louisville painter of Kentucky beech forests; the painting does not name the site), a neighboring state.Woods Scene, Harvey Joiner, c. 1880-1920. Public domain. Source record.

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

Forests and woodlands

Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.

Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone

Open, thin-soil openings and rock on limestone, dolomite or other lime-rich rock, including cedar glades.

Glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock

Open, thin-soil openings, outcrops and cliffs on dark, magnesium- or iron-rich rock such as serpentine, diabase or gabbro.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 28 animals.

Widespread birds also seen here (48)

Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

4CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Ptelea

  • Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Papilio cresphontesEastern Giant Swallowtail
  • Agonopterix costimacula
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
1BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Ptelea

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

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
RUTACEAE

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

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4?
Global rankG5T4?Q
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources