This is widespread across east-central states, generally in woods on toe-slopes and riparian terraces with moist fertile soils. In Ky. many localities are restricted to islands, where plants may have been protected from browsing and rooting by livestock. But it is also locally abundant along clifflines in a few areas, suggesting more local protection: e.g., in and near Flora Cliff Nature Preserve of FAYE, near Warwick and Oregon Road in MERC, and along the Green Rv. in EDMO (A. Meier, pers. comm.). Restriction to these habitats may also reflect the refuges that such sites have offerred from livestock or prehistoric herbivores. M. virginica is the only member of Boraginaceae in Ky. that is glabrous, lacking the characteristic irritating hairs of other species (cystoliths with silicon dioxide and calcium carboante). With no obvious bitterness or other bad taste, this species may be relatively nutritious for mammalian herbivores, but it is likely to contain some amount of toxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids (Roeder et al. 2015). There has been some reputed use as "lungwort" for treatment of congestion.