St. Augustine Grass
Stenotaphrum secundatum
Found in brackish and freshwater tidal marshes, roadsides, dunes, lawns. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
—
Not native
Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- About 10.8 inches
- Light
- Dappled sunlight, Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to moist
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- July to October
JFMAMJJASOND
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 4 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement.
Habitats
Freshwater tidal marshes; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground; Coastal dunes and beaches.
Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there. All habitats
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
14CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Stenotaphrum
- Agrotis ipsilonIpsilon Dart, Black Cutworm, Greasy Cutworm
- Anicla infectaGreen Cutworm Moth
- Atalopedes huronSachem
- Cisseps fulvicollisYellow-Collared Scape Moth
- Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
- Hermeuptychia sosybiusCarolina Satyr
- Hylephila phyleusFiery Skipper
- Lerema acciusClouded Skipper, Corn Leaf tier
- Lerodea eufalaEufala Skipper, Gray Skipper, Rice Leafroller
- Leucania scirpicolaScirpus Wainscot
Show all 14
- Megisto cymelaLittle Wood Satyr
- Polites othoSouthern Broken-Dash, Broken-Dash Skipper
- Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claimNo records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Poaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 7a–12b
- Soil pH
- Acidic to alkaline
- Flower color
- Green or brown
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Growth habit
- Spreads by rhizomes
- Foliage color
- Green
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “July to October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green or brown” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth habit · “Spreads by rhizomes” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Hardiness · “Zones 7a–12b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “About 10.8 inches” · USDA PLANTS (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs) · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Dappled sunlight (shade through upper canopy all day); 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 · “Moist; Occasionally dry; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Acidic to alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- NatureServe Explorer
- 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