Sandplain gerardia needs disturbed habitat in maritime grasslands, so it is often threatened by natural succession. Animal browse, usually by rabbits, can be a problem as well as encroachment by exotic plant species. One population was extirpated by the development of a roadside and another by the use of herbicides along a railroad.

Maritime grasslands need to be protected and managed by fire or grazing to protect the remaining populations.

We need to learn more about its habitat requirements and general ecology, including reproduction and the nature of a possible hemiparasitic relationship.