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Star Chickweed

Stellaria pubera

Also listed as Stellaria puber

Found in bottomland forests, moist slopes, coves, hammocks. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

59
Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height
6 inches–1 foot
Spread
6–20 inches
Light
Dappled sunlight, Partial shade
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
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
Spring and summer

Recorded in 82 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

Moist forests

Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland
Regional / representative. Shown: Mountains of North and South Carolina; exact site not identified, a neighboring state.Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Rich cove forests

Cove hardwood forest
Regional / representative. Shown: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee; representative habitat composite, not a documented exact viewpoint, a neighboring state.Cove hardwood forest, Hynes, Robert 'Bob', by 2012. Public domain. Source record.

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. 110 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

13CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Stellaria

  • Agnorisma badinodisPale-Banded Dart
  • Agrotis venerabilisVenerable Dart, Dusky Cut-Worm
  • Elaphria grataGrateful Midget
  • Euphyia intermediataSharp-Angled Carpet Moth, The Intermediate
  • Feltia jaculiferaDingy Cutworm
  • Haematopis gratariaChickweed Geometer
  • Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
  • Lacinipolia renigeraBristly Ground Cat, Bristly Cutworm Moth, Kidney Spotted "Mamestra"
  • Lobocleta ossulariaDrab Brown Wave
  • Xanthorhoe ferrugataRed Twin-Spot, Twin-Spot Carpet
Show all 13
  • Xestia c-nigrumSpotted Cut-Worm, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Lesser Black-letter Dart
  • Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
  • Xestia smithiiSmith's Dart
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
6BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Stellaria

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
18BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Stellaria

  • Agelaius tricolorTricolored Blackbird
  • Anser rossiiRoss's Goose
  • Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Haemorhous mexicanusHouse Finch
  • Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
  • Lagopus leucuraWhite-tailed Ptarmigan
  • Melospiza melodiaSong Sparrow
  • Melozone crissalisCalifornia Towhee
  • Oreortyx pictusMountain Quail
Show all 18
  • Passer domesticusHouse Sparrow
  • Pheucticus melanocephalusBlack-headed Grosbeak
  • Pipilo maculatusSpotted Towhee
  • Spinus psaltriaLesser Goldfinch
  • Spizella passerinaChipping Sparrow
  • Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
  • Zonotrichia atricapillaGolden-crowned Sparrow
  • Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Caryophyllaceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–11b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
White

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Giant Chickweed; Stellaria puber

Conservation status

Virginia rankS5
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources