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Fringed Meadow-beauty

Rhexia petiolata

Found in wet pine flatwoods and savannas, pocosin borders, and ditches. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

40
Good

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

Profile 100%

Height
Up to about 20 inches
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist
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
Perennial
Bloom
May to October

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.

1 of 4

Pine flatwoods

Wet Pine Flatwoods, Shaken Creek Preserve - typical shrub layer
Wet pine flatwoods with a shrub layer. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Wet Pine Flatwoods, Shaken Creek Preserve - typical shrub layer, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

Pine savannas

Sandy Pine Savanna, Rush Featherling subtype
Sandy pine savanna. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Sandy Pine Savanna, Rush Featherling subtype, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

Pocosins and bay forests

Dense low pocosin
Dense low pocosin. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Dense low pocosin, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

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 · Rhexia

  • Chloridea subflexaSubflexus Straw, Groundcherry Sun Moth
  • Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
  • Cymatophora approximariaLarge Scalloped-Wing, Giant Grey
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Scopula limboundataLarge Lace-Border
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
8BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Rhexia

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
Melastomataceae
Hardiness
Zones 7a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Pink or purple
Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Fringed Meadow beauty

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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How to check your spot

Sources