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Virginia Cup-plant

Silphium connatum

Found in floodplain forests and openings. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

58
Strong

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

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 10 feet
Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to wet
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
June to August

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 11 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 88 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

5CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Silphium

  • Eucosma giganteanaGiant Eucosma
  • Hydraecia immanisHop Borer, Hop Vine Borer
  • Papaipema baptisiaeWild Indigo Borer, Indigo Stem Borer
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Tricholita notataX
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
36BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Silphium

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
7Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Silphium

  • Dianthidium curvatum
  • Dieunomia heteropoda
  • Megachile parallela
  • Melissodes dentiventris
  • Melissodes vernoniae
  • Melissodes wheeleri
  • Paranthidium jugatorium
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
—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
Asteraceae
Flower color
Yellow

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Silphium perfoliatum var. connatum; Virginia Cup plant

Conservation status

Virginia rankS3S4
Global rankG5T3T4 [G3G4]
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