Giant Salvinia

Salvinia molesta

Found in still waters of farm ponds, calcareous seepage ponds, and other situations. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

-85

Severe harm

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

Profile 59%

Light: Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture: Wet to standing water

No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…

Do not plant. Listed invasive in Virginia.

At a glance

Bloom: January to December

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Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

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

Recorded in 1 Virginia county.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement.

1 of 2

Regional / representative. Shown: Southern coastal pond margins, Florida and Louisiana to North Carolina; state not identified, a neighboring state.Yellow butterwort beside a moss-hung coastal pond, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Groundwater seep. Shown: Gum Swamp Trail, Weymouth Woods, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep, ncwetlands.org, undated. CC BY 2.0. Source record.

Habitats

Ponds, lakes and their shores; seeps and springs.

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there. All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Salvinia

Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
Parapoynx allionealisWatermilfoil Leafcutter, Bladderwort Casemaker

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: Salviniaceae

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

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “January to December” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil · “Frequent standing water” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Virginia rank	SNA
Global rank	GNR
VA status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden