Flower profile

Camphor-weed

Pluchea camphorata

Camphor-weed (Pluchea camphorata) is a flowering plant in the Asteraceae family, native in the lower 48 states, blooming mostly August–October across the U.S.

Native to Mississippi

Camphor-weed is a wildflower that USDA PLANTS lists as native in the lower 48 states. In Mississippi it's most often seen in bloom in August–October.

25states where USDA records it

273MS sightings*

4,062U.S. sightings*

*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.

On our lists for: Mississippi

Quick look

Pluchea camphorata, known as camphorweed or marsh-fleabane, is a small flowering herbaceous annual plant of the family Asteraceae.
From Wikipedia's article Pluchea camphorata, CC BY-SA 4.0.

It belongs to the Asteraceae family. ^iNaturalist
USDA PLANTS describes it as an herb (forb) with a annual, perennial life cycle. ^{USDA PLANTS}
USDA PLANTS lists it as native in the lower 48 states and records it in 25 states. ^{USDA PLANTS}
NatureServe lists it as native to Mississippi. ^NatureServe
In Mississippi, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in August–October. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 273 research-grade sightings of it in Mississippi, ranking #106 among the 154 flowers on our Mississippi list. ^iNaturalist

When does it bloom?

In Mississippi, most flowering sightings come in August–October.

Flowering records by month in Mississippi (iNaturalist research-grade observations marked “Flowering”) (128 records)

Conservation status

Federal (U.S. ESA): Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. ^{USFWS ECOS}
NatureServe global: G5 Secure worldwide. ^NatureServe
Mississippi: No list Mississippi has no state law listing endangered or threatened plants, so we show NatureServe's Mississippi ranks instead. NatureServe: SNR, not yet ranked in Mississippi.
Rare elsewhere: Other states where NatureServe ranks it rare or missing: DC (SX), DE (SH), KS (S1), MD (S2), NJ (SX), OH (S1), PA (SH), UT (S1), WV (SX). (S1 critically imperiled, S2 imperiled, SH possibly extirpated, SX presumed extirpated.)

Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.

Can you eat it?

For peopleNot well documented

None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.

For petsNot well documented

It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.

🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.

Where does it grow?

USDA PLANTS records camphor-weed in 25 states.

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recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded

See the full list of states

Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin.

Mississippi counties with USDA records: Adams, Alcorn, Amite, Attala, Bolivar, Carroll, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Claiborne, Clarke, Clay, Coahoma, Copiah, Covington, DeSoto, Franklin, George, Greene, Harrison, Hinds, Holmes, Issaquena, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Kemper, Lafayette, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Leake, Lee, Leflore, Lowndes, Madison, Marshall, Monroe, Montgomery, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Panola, Pike, Pontotoc, Rankin, Scott, Sharkey, Simpson, Smith, Stone, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tishomingo, Union, Washington, Webster, Wilkinson, Winston, Yalobusha, Yazoo.

Names, range and relatives

Other scientific names (synonyms in USDA PLANTS): Pluchea petiolata, Pluchea viscida.

County records: USDA PLANTS lists it in 540 counties across 21 states; the most are in Mississippi (61), Arkansas (57), Louisiana (57).

Other Pluchea on Bloomipedia (5): Marsh fleabane, Arrowweed, Rosy camphorweed, Cure-for-all, Indian marsh fleabane.

More from the Asteraceae family (212 on Bloomipedia; most observed first): Common yarrow, Goldenrods, White snakeroot, Sunflowers, Chicory, Black-eyed Susan, Bull thistle, Common dandelion.

More Mississippi flowers

Bristle thistle

Cirsium horridulum

Native

🌼 Blooms in MS: March–May

Black-eyed Susan

Rudbeckia hirta

★ MD state flowerNative

🌼 Blooms in MS: May–July

Dogfennel

Eupatorium capillifolium

Native

🌼 Blooms in MS: October–November

Sources

USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile PLCA7.
iNaturalist, Pluchea camphorata: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
Wikipedia, Pluchea camphorata (lead quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Mississippi: Mississippi Noxious Weed List (2 Miss. Code R. 1-3-01-136.01).
USFWS, ECOS species database (ESA listing check), October 17, 2026.
NatureServe Explorer, Pluchea camphorata (global and state ranks).
Edibility and toxicity: no source found (marked "not well documented").
Photo: Lauren McLaurin via iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0 · resized.