Pleatleaf Knotweed
Polygonum tenue
Found in glades, barrens, and thin, rocky soils, over various rock types (including granite, diabase, amphibolite, greenstone, metagabbro, and shale), also in dry sands. 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 88%
- Height
- 4–20 inches
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry
No photograph yet. Looking for an old drawing…
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Annual
- Bloom
- July to October
- Fruiting season
- August to November
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 6 West Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on mafic or serpentine rock
Open, thin-soil openings, outcrops and cliffs on dark, magnesium- or iron-rich rock such as serpentine, diabase or gabbro.
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.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 55 animals.
Widespread birds also seen here (42)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- American Crow
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Robin
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-billed Cuckoo
- Blue Grosbeak
- Blue Jay
- Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chimney Swift
- Chipping Sparrow
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Raven
- Cooper's Hawk
- Dark-eyed Junco
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Towhee
- European Starling
- Fox Sparrow
- Gray Catbird
- Great Crested Flycatcher
- Great Horned Owl
- Least Flycatcher
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Olive-sided Flycatcher
- Orange-crowned Warbler
- Osprey
- Purple Finch
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Spotted Sandpiper
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- Wild Turkey
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
48CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV
Genus host records with ranges including WV · Polygonum
- Achyra rantalisGarden Webworm Moth
- Acronicta insularisHenry's Marsh Moth, Cattail Caterpillar
- Acronicta oblinitaSmeared Dagger
- Anaplectoides prasinaGreen Arches Dart
- Anticlea multiferataMany-Lined Carpet
- Apantesis argeArge Tiger Moth
- Apantesis naisNais Tiger Moth
- Archips semiferanusOak Leafroller Moth
- Calothysanis amaturariaCross-Lined Wave
- Chionodes discoocellellaEyeringed Chionodes
Show all 48
- Clepsis persicanaWhite Triangle Tortrix
- Coleophora cratipennellaStreaked Coleophora
- Costaconvexa centrostrigariaBent-Lined Carpet
- Dypterygia rozmaniAmerican Bird's-Wing
- Elophila icciusalisPondside Pyralid, Pondside Crambid
- Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
- Emmelina monodactylaMorning-Glory Plume Moth
- Epiblema otiosanaBidens Borer Moth
- Eusarca confusariaConfused Eusarca
- Euxoa tessellataTessellate Dart, Striped Cutworm
- Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
- Haematopis gratariaChickweed Geometer
- Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
- Homophoberia apicosaBlack Wedge-Spot, Smartweed Groundling
- Hyles lineataWhite-Lined Sphinx
- Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
- Maliattha synochitisBlack-Dotted Lithacodia, Black-Dotted Glyph, Brass-Dotted Grass Moth
- Melanchra pictaPainted Arches, Zebra Caterpillar Moth
- Melanolophia canadariaCanadian Melanolphia, Variable Redmarked Looper
- Metarranthis duariaRuddy Metarranthis
- Nephelodes miniansBronzed Cutworm
- Nomophila nearcticaLucerne Moth, American Celery Webworm
- Orthonama obstipataThe Gem
- Ostrinia obumbratalisSmartweed Borer
- Ostrinia penitalisAmerican Lotus Borer, Lily Moth
- Parapoynx obscuralisObscure Pondweed Moth
- Prochoerodes lineolaLarge Maple Spanworm Moth
- Pseudeustrotia carneolaPink-Barred Lithacodia, Pink-Barred Pseudeustrotia
- Pyrrhia exprimensPurple-Lined Sallow, Purple-Lined Sun Moth
- Saucrobotys futilalisDogbane Saucrobotys
- Schinia spinosaeSpinose Flower Moth
- Scopula limboundataLarge Lace-Border
- Spilosoma congruaAgreeable Tiger Moth
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
- Tharsalea hyllusBronze Copper
- Xanthorhoe ferrugataRed Twin-Spot, Twin-Spot Carpet
- Xanthotype sospetaCrocus Geometer
23BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Polygonum
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
36BirdsRecorded eating Polygonum 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.
- SoraSeeds. 7 diet records
- Red-winged BlackbirdSeeds. 5 diet records
- Lesser ScaupSeeds. 5 diet records
- Chipping SparrowSeeds. 5 diet records
- Ring-necked DuckSeeds. 4 diet records
- Wood DuckSeeds. 4 diet records
- Wild Turkey4 diet records
- Northern Bobwhite3 diet records
- RedheadSeeds. 3 diet records
- Virginia Rail3 diet records
Show all 36
- Brown-headed Cowbird2 diet records
- Dark-eyed JuncoSeeds. 2 diet records
- European Starling2 diet records
- MallardSeeds. 2 diet records
- Song SparrowSeeds. 2 diet records
- Bobolink2 diet records
- House Sparrow2 diet records
- Mourning Dove2 diet records
- American CootSeeds. 1 diet record
- American Pipit1 diet record
- American RobinFruit. 1 diet record
- American WigeonSeeds. 1 diet record
- CanvasbackSeeds. 1 diet record
- Common GoldeneyeSeeds. 1 diet record
- Common Grackle1 diet record
- Eastern BluebirdFruit. 1 diet record
- Horned LarkSeeds. 1 diet record
- House FinchSeeds. 1 diet record
- King RailSeeds. 1 diet record
- Northern PintailSeeds. 1 diet record
- Pine Grosbeak1 diet record
- Rock Pigeon1 diet record
- Ruddy DuckSeeds. 1 diet record
- Ruffed Grouse1 diet record
- White-crowned SparrowSeeds. 1 diet record
- White-eyed Vireo1 diet record
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 Polygonum 36
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- SoraPorzana carolina
- Red-winged BlackbirdAgelaius phoeniceus
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Chipping SparrowSpizella passerina
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Wood DuckAix sponsa
- Wild TurkeyMeleagris gallopavo
- Northern BobwhiteColinus virginianus
- RedheadAythya americana
- Virginia RailRallus limicola
- Brown-headed CowbirdMolothrus ater
- Dark-eyed JuncoJunco hyemalis
- European StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Song SparrowMelospiza melodia
- BobolinkDolichonyx oryzivorus
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
- American CootFulica americana
- American PipitAnthus rubescens
- American RobinTurdus migratorius
- American WigeonAnas americana
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
- Common GrackleQuiscalus quiscula
- Eastern BluebirdSialia sialis
- Horned LarkEremophila alpestris
- House FinchCarpodacus mexicanus
- King RailRallus elegans
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Pine GrosbeakPinicola enucleator
- Rock PigeonColumba livia
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Ruffed GrouseBonasa umbellus
- White-crowned SparrowZonotrichia leucophrys
- White-eyed VireoVireo griseus
Plant details
- Family
- Polygonaceae
- Flower color
- White, pink, green or brown
- Fruit begins
- August
- Fruit ends
- November
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “July to October” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “White, pink, green or brown” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Fruit begins · “August” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “November” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Height · “4–20 inches” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Life cycle · “Annual” · Minnesota Wildflowers
- Light · “Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Dry (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Pleat Lef Knotweed; Slender Knotweed
Conservation status
| West Virginia rank | S4 |
|---|---|
| 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
- NatureServe Explorer
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition
- 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