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Eastern Blue-eyed-grass

Sisyrinchium atlanticum

Found in dry, sandy or rocky places, moist meadows, bogs, pine savannas, streambanks. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

16
Modest

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

Profile 94%

Height
6 inches–1.5 feet
Spread
6–8 inches
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 1 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 100 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

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At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial, from a bulb
Bloom
March to June
Fruiting season
June to August

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 34 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 3

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.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

Meadows

Open, grassy or flowery ground that is not wet, such as mountain meadows; wet meadows are separate.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 79 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

0CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
8BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Sisyrinchium

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
Iridaceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–10b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Blue, purple or white
Fruit begins
June
Fruit ends
August

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Eastern Blue Eyed Grass; Sisyrinchium mucronatum var. atlanticum

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4
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