Hispid Hedge-nettle, Bristly Hedge-nettle
Stachys hispida
Found in wet meadows and moist forests. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- About 25 feet
- Light
- Up to 6 hours of direct sun
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Bloom
- Late spring
- Fruiting season
- Summer
Not yet recorded · Spread · Soil · Life cycle · Leaves
Recorded in 28 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Open, wet, grassy or sedgy ground that is not a bog.
Who uses this plant?
10CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Stachys
- Clepsis peritanaGarden Tortrix
- Endothenia hebesanaVerbena Bud Moth
- Euptoieta claudiaVariegated Fritillary, (?)Gulf Fritillary
- Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
- Megalographa bilobaBilobed Looper Moth
- Ogdoconta cinereolaCommon Pinkband Groundling
- Vanessa carduiPainted Lady, Cosmopolite
- Endothenia montanana
- Endothenia nubilana
- Pelochrista womonana
16BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Stachys
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
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Stachys
- Ortalis vetulaPlain Chachalaca
- Spinus tristisAmerican Goldfinch
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Family not recorded
- Flower color
- Purple
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Growth habit
- Single crown
- Foliage color
- Green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “Late spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Flower color · “Purple” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Single crown” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Height · “About 25 feet” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- primary_flower_color · “purple” · USDA PLANTS
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | Not available |
|---|---|
| Global rank | GNR |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- FloraQuest: Northern Tier (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- 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
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications

