Golden-club
Orontium aquaticum
Found in ponds, lakes and their shores; streams, rivers and their banks; swamps. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- 1–2 feet
- Spread
- 1–2.5 feet
- Light
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Moist to standing water
Space about 2 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 25 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Leaves
- Deciduous
- Bloom
- February to May
- Fruiting season
- May to July
Recorded in 4 West Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Still water and its edges: ponds, lakes, millponds and reservoirs.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.
Forested wetlands with standing water much of the year, such as cypress and gum swamps.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 136 animals.
- Alder FlycatcherEmpidonax alnorum
- American RobinTurdus migratorius
- Black-capped ChickadeePoecile atricapillus
- Black-crowned Night-heronNycticorax nycticorax
- Blue JayCyanocitta cristata
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- Cedar WaxwingBombycilla cedrorum
- Chimney SwiftChaetura pelagica
- Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon pyrrhonota
- Common NighthawkChordeiles minor
- Common RavenCorvus corax
- Cooper's HawkAccipiter cooperii
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Downy WoodpeckerPicoides pubescens
- Eastern KingbirdTyrannus tyrannus
- Eastern PhoebeSayornis phoebe
- Gray CatbirdDumetella carolinensis
- Great Blue HeronArdea herodias
- Great EgretArdea alba
- Great Horned OwlBubo virginianus
- Green HeronButorides virescens
- Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
Who uses this plant?
3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV
Genus host records with ranges including WV · Orontium
- Elophila icciusalisPondside Pyralid, Pondside Crambid
- Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
- Parapoynx maculalisPolymorphic Pondweed Moth
3BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Orontium
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 4.0No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Araceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 5a–10b
- Soil pH
- Acidic
- Flower color
- Yellow, green or white
- Fruit begins
- May
- Fruit ends
- July
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “February to May” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow, green or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Fruit begins · “May” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “July” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Hardiness · “Zones 5a–10b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · 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
- Soil · “Frequent standing water; Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil pH · “Acidic” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “1–2.5 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Bog Torches; Golden Club; Never Wet
Conservation status
| West Virginia rank | S3S4 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| WV 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
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Florida edition
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- NatureServe Explorer
- 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

























