Lizard's Tail
Saururus cernuus
A colony-forming wetland perennial for wet shade, with glossy heart-shaped leaves and arching, nodding white flower spikes that curl like a lizard’s tail and carry a faint citrus scent. Spreads by rhizome to carpet boggy stream banks and pond edges.
- Family
- Saururaceae
- Type
- wildflower
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 1–4 ft
- Spacing
- 1–3 ft apart
- Light
- part shade, shade
- Soil moisture
- wet
- Soil pH
- acidic, neutral
- Bloom
- May, June, July, August
- Bloom colors
- white
- Wildlife value
- pollinators
- Landscape uses
- rain garden, naturalizing, groundcover
- Native states
- AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV