Flower profile
Slender vervain
Verbena rigida
Slender vervain (Verbena rigida) is a flowering plant in the Verbenaceae family, introduced in the lower 48 states, blooming mostly April–May across the U.S.
Slender vervain is a wildflower that USDA PLANTS lists as introduced in the lower 48 states. In Mississippi it's most often seen in bloom in April–June.
*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.
On our lists for: Mississippi
Quick look
Verbena rigida, known as slender vervain or tuberous vervain, is a flowering herbaceous perennial plant in the family Verbenaceae. It is native to Brazil and Argentina, and is not fully hardy in temperate climates, where consequently it is grown from seed as an annual.
- It belongs to the Verbenaceae family. iNaturalist
- USDA PLANTS describes it as an herb (forb) with a perennial life cycle. USDA PLANTS
- USDA PLANTS lists it as introduced in the lower 48 states and records it in 15 states. USDA PLANTS
- NatureServe lists it as not native to Mississippi. NatureServe
- In Mississippi, most iNaturalist sightings of it in flower come in April–June. iNaturalist
- iNaturalist has 336 research-grade sightings of it in Mississippi, ranking #82 among the 154 flowers on our Mississippi list. iNaturalist
When does it bloom?
In Mississippi, most flowering sightings come in April–June.
Conservation status
- Federal (U.S. ESA)
- Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. USFWS ECOS
- NatureServe global
- GNR Not yet ranked worldwide. NatureServe
- Mississippi
- No list Mississippi has no state law listing endangered or threatened plants, so we show NatureServe's Mississippi ranks instead. NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Mississippi.
- Rare elsewhere
- No other U.S. state ranks it S1, S2, SH or SX.
Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.
Can you eat it?
None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no edibility or poison notes on its page), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people. NC State Extension
It isn't on the ASPCA plant list, and NC State Extension doesn't flag it for pets.
🌿 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 slender vervain in 15 states.
recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded
See the full list of states
Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia.
Mississippi counties with USDA records: Adams, Amite, Clarke, Covington, Forrest, Franklin, George, Hancock, Hinds, Jackson, Jasper, Jones, Kemper, Lauderdale, Newton, Noxubee, Perry, Rankin, Scott, Smith, Warren, Wayne, Wilkinson.
Names, range and relatives
Native status by region (USDA PLANTS): Hawaii: Introduced; Lower 48 states: Introduced; Puerto Rico: Introduced.
Other scientific names (synonyms in USDA PLANTS): Verbena venosa.
County records: USDA PLANTS lists it in 160 counties across 13 states; the most are in Louisiana (43), Mississippi (23), Georgia (21).
Other Verbena on Bloomipedia (7): Blue vervain, White vervain, Hoary vervain, Texas vervain, Brazilian vervain, Bigbract verbena, MacDougal verbena.
More from the Verbenaceae family (14 on Bloomipedia; most observed first): Dakota mock vervain, Lantana, Rose vervain, Common lantana, Rattail, Southwestern mock vervain, Fiddlewood.
More Mississippi flowers
Sources
- USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile VERI2.
- iNaturalist, Verbena rigida: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
- Wikipedia, Verbena rigida (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, Verbena rigida (global and state ranks).
- Edibility and toxicity: NC State Extension.
- Photo: Lauren McLaurin via iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0 · resized.