Lespedeza hirta, the hairy lespedeza or hairy bush clover, is a perennial forb native to Ontario and the eastern United States. It grows at most three feet high. It has inconspicuous small white blooms in the summer and prefers average to dry soil. It is noteworthy for the number of Lepidoptera species it supports. It is a larval host to the bella moth, black-spotted prominent moth, cloudless sulpher, confused cloudy-wing, eastern tailed blue, gray hairstreak, southern cloudywing, and zarucco duskywing.The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.
Ecology
Lespedeza hirta is insect pollinated and is recorded to have been visited in northern Florida by Anthidiellum notatum, Ceratina, Megachile exilis, Megachile georgica, Megachile petulans, Stelis louisae, and Trachusa ridingsii. Ulyshen, M. D., K. Robertson, S. Horn, and C. Dixon. 2024. Characterization of the bee community and pollination network in a southeastern U.S. pine savanna. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 12:1403602.
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