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Curtiss's Milkwort

Senega curtissii

Found in mafic barrens, old fields, thickets, openings. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

30
Good

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

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 16 inches
Light
Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Dry to moist
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 or perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
June to October

Not yet recorded · Spread

Recorded in 3 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 3

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.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

Forest edges and thickets

Borders of forests, clearings and shrubby thickets.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Polygala

  • Phytometra rhodarialisPink-Bordered Yellow
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
10BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Polygala

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
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Ammospiza leconteiiLeConte's Sparrow
  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
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
Polygalaceae
Flower color
Pink or purple
Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Appalachian Milkwort; Curtiss Milkwort; Polygala curtissii

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS2
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources