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Mountain Woodsorrel

Oxalis montana

Found in spruce-fir forests, northern hardwood forests, restricted to high elevations southwards. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

57
Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height
3 inches–1 foot
Spread
3–6 inches
Light
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
May to July

Recorded in 8 West 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 2

Spruce-fir forests

Cool, evergreen forests of red spruce and Fraser fir on the highest mountains.

Northern hardwood forests

High mountain forests of beech, yellow birch and sugar maple, including boulderfield forests.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 67 animals.

Widespread birds also seen here (38)

Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.

All wildlife of West Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

6CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Oxalis

  • Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
  • Dysstroma truncataMarbled Carpet
  • Galgula partitaThe Wedgling
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
22BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Oxalis

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
11BirdsRecorded eating Oxalis in West Virginia

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes West Virginia, most records first.

Show all 11
Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab)

Direct food only. 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

Birds that eat Oxalis 11

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Oxalidaceae
Hardiness
Zones 1a–7b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Pink or white

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Forest Shamrock; Mountain Wood Sorrel; Oxalis acetosella

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS4
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources