Chinese Mustard
Brassica juncea
—
Not native
Not native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 76%
- Height
- 1–1.5 feet
- Spread
- 1–1.5 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Usually moist
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Annual
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- Early spring
- Fruiting season
- Summer
Recorded in 3 West Virginia counties.
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
60CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV
Genus host records with ranges including WV · Brassica
- Abagrotis alternataGreater Red Dart, Mottled Grey Cutworm
- Acharia stimuleaSaddleback Caterpillar Moth
- Agnorisma badinodisPale-Banded Dart
- Agrotis gladiariaSwordsman Dart, Clay-Backed Cut-Worm
- Agrotis ipsilonIpsilon Dart, Black Cutworm, Greasy Cutworm
- Agrotis venerabilisVenerable Dart, Dusky Cut-Worm
- Agrotis vetustaOld Man Dart
- Anagrapha falciferaCelery Looper Moth
- Anarta trifoliiThe Nutmeg, Clover Cutworm
- Anicla infectaGreen Cutworm Moth
Show all 60
- Apamea amputatrixYellow-Headed Cutworm Moth
- Apamea devastatorGlassy Borer, Glassy Cutworm Moth
- Autographa precationisCommon Looper Moth
- Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
- Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
- Colias eurythemeOrange Sulphur, Alfalfa Butterfly
- Condica sutorThe Cobbler, Cobbler Groundling
- Derrima stellataPink Star
- Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
- Euphyia intermediataSharp-Angled Carpet Moth, The Intermediate
- Eustixia pupulaSpotted Peppergrass Moth
- Euxoa messoriaReaper Dart, Darksided Cutworm, Dark-Sided Cutworm
- Euxoa tessellataTessellate Dart, Striped Cutworm
- Evergestis pallidataPurple-Backed Cabbageworm Moth
- Evergestis rimosalisCross-Striped Cabbageworm, Cross-Shaped Cabbageworm
- Feltia herilisMaster's Dart
- Feltia jaculiferaDingy Cutworm
- Feltia subgothicaSubgothic Dart
- Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
- Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
- Herpetogramma bipunctalisSouthern Beet Webworm, Two-Spotted Herpetogramma
- Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
- Hypercompe scriboniaGiant Leopard Moth, Great Leopard Moth
- Lacanobia subjunctaSpeckled Arches, Subdues Arches, Harnessed Mamestra, Speckled Cutworm Moth, Grand Arches?(incorrectly)
- Lacinipolia renigeraBristly Ground Cat, Bristly Cutworm Moth, Kidney Spotted "Mamestra"
- Manduca sextaCarolina Sphinx, Tomatoe Sphinx, Tobacco Hornworm
- Megalographa bilobaBilobed Looper Moth
- Melanchra pictaPainted Arches, Zebra Caterpillar Moth
- Mocis latipesSmall Mocis, Striped Grass Looper
- Mythimna unipunctaArmyworm Moth, White Speck
- Nephelodes miniansBronzed Cutworm
- Pandemis lamprosanaWoodgrain Leafroller
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Pieris virginiensisWest Virginia White
- Pontia protodiceCheckered White
- Pyrrhia ciliscaAmerican Bordered Sallow, Noble Sun Moth
- Spaelotis clandestinaClandestine Dart, W-Marked Cutworm
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
- Spoladea recurvalisHawaiian Beet Webworm
- Sunira bicoloragoBicolored Sallow
- Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
- Trichordestra legitimaStriped Garden Caterpillar Moth
- Udea rubigalisCelery Leaftier
- Urbanus proteusLong-Tailed Skipper, Bean Leaf Roller
- Xanthorhoe labradorensisLabrador Carpet, Packard’s Carpet
- Xestia c-nigrumSpotted Cut-Worm, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Lesser Black-letter Dart
- Xestia dolosaGreater Black-Letter Dart, Greater Spotted Cutworm
- Xestia smithiiSmith's Dart
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
1Specialist beesPollen specialists
14BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Brassica
- Alectoris chukarChukar
- Anthus rubescensAmerican Pipit
- Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
- Haemorhous mexicanusHouse Finch
- Junco hyemalisDark-eyed Junco
- Melospiza melodiaSong Sparrow
- Melozone crissalisCalifornia Towhee
- Perdix perdixGray Partridge
- Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
- Spinus psaltriaLesser Goldfinch
Show all 14
- Spizelloides arboreaAmerican Tree Sparrow
- Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
- Zonotrichia atricapillaGolden-crowned Sparrow
- Zonotrichia leucophrysWhite-crowned Sparrow
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
Growing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Brassicaceae
- Soil pH
- Neutral
- Flower color
- Yellow
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Growth habit
- Single crown
- Foliage color
- Dark green
- Fruit begins
- Summer
- Fruit ends
- Summer
What its natural habitat tells you
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “Early spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Flower color · “Yellow” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Foliage color · “Dark 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 · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
- Height · “1–1.5 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Annual” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “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
- primary_flower_color · “yellow” · USDA PLANTS
- Soil · “Moist” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “1–1.5 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Brown Mustard Greens; Indian Mustard Greens; Leaf Mustard Greens
Conservation status
| West Virginia rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | GNR |
| WV status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- NatureServe Explorer
- USDA PLANTS
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- West Virginia occurrence source
- 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