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Narrowleaf Bluecurls

Trichostema setaceum

Found in thin soils around rock outcrops, especially granite flatrocks, dry sandy soils of the Coastal Plain. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

31
Good

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

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 1 foot
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry
Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Annual
Bloom
August to November

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 18 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

Granite and other acidic rock outcrops

Bare or thin-soil rock on granite, gneiss, sandstone, quartzite and similar acidic rock, including granite flatrocks and domes.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 53 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Trichostema

  • Manduca rusticaRustic Sphinx
  • Eteobalea sexnotella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
4BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Trichostema

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
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
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
Lamiaceae
Flower color
Blue or violet
Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “August to November” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “Blue or violet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Height · “Up to about 1 foot” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Life cycle · “Annual” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
  • Light · “Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Soil · “Dry (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as

Narrow Leaf Blue Curls

Conservation status

Virginia rankS2
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