| Author | (Greville & Hooker) Torrey & A. Gray | |
| Distribution | Occurs throughout the lower Piedmont, but is widely scattered over parts of the Coastal Plain, and the remainder of the Piedmont and Mountains. Possibly absent in many counties in the eastern Coastal Plain and in the northwestern Piedmont and northern Mountains.
This species is most common west of NC, ranging from western PA and KS south to TX and the FL Panhandle, with it being most numerous from MO south to LA and eastern TX. It ranges east of the Appalachians northward only to southern VA.
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| Abundance | In the lower Piedmont, it is uncommon to infrequent, despite an abundance of suitable habitat. It is mostly rare to locally uncommon elsewhere. Despite it not being common, it has been found in nearly all Piedmont counties in the eastern 35% of the province. For whatever reason, it may have been overlooked in the past by collectors; more recent botanists have added many counties to the range as reported in RAB (1968) and even on the BONAP map; perhaps the species has increased in recent decades.
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| Habitat | This species is primarily found in dry to mesic overgrown fields, powerline clearings, and less so along dry woodland borders and rarely in open upland woods. It can be found in vacant lots and other rather disturbed sites, such as recent scrapes. It favors full sun, and it does not occur in wetlands. Why the species is so relatively scarce in such abundant and disturbed habitats is unclear. Is it simply overlooked by collectors unless in bloom? But, where found, it can occur by the hundreds. | |
| Phenology | Blooms and fruits from July to September. | |
| Identification | This is a quite slender herb that grows to about 1-1.5 feet tall; it has several virgate-branching stems in the upper part of the plant. It has opposite and very narrow, entire leaves that are also virgate/erect; they are quite abundant on the stems and only about 1/2-inch long. The abundance of such narrow and upright leaves give the plant a distinctive look, but as it grows in fields it can be easily overlooked amid other plants unless the flowers are seen. The plants contain 5 yellow petals, but these are rotate (generally to the right) like airplane propellers; the flowers terminate each branch. | |
| Taxonomic Comments | None
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| Other Common Name(s) | Nits-and-lice. This is the most frequently reported common name on websites. However, this name provides no useful relationship information and is highly informal and colloquial. The species is seldom included in most field guides or photo guides, and thus for most of the public this species has no common name at all. Thankfully, NatureServe Explorer names it as Drummond’s St. John’s-wort, and this is the name adopted on this website. | |
| State Rank | S4 | |
| Global Rank | G5 | |
| State Status | | |
| US Status | | |
| USACE-agcp | FACU link |
| USACE-emp | UPL link |
