Celastrus scandens
Mark Moran
Climbing
Bittersweet
is a woody
vine
which grows by twining itself around shrubs,
trees, and other plants. It usually grows in
thickets,
fields, woods, or riverbanks. Climbing Bittersweet can
grow up to 60 feet tall, hanging from the branches of trees.
It has oval-shaped green leaves, up to four inches long,
which turn yellow in the Fall. The leaves have small
teeth
on the edges. Bittersweet flowers are
small and green, about 1/6 inch wide, in clusters
about four inches long. The fruits of this vine
start off green and look like berries. They turn from green
to yellow, and from yellow to orange. In the Winter, the
orange outer layer opens and falls off, leaving three bright
red parts underneath. Each of the three sections has one or
two seeds in it. Alice B. Russell,
Poisonous Plants of North Carolina Darrin Kimbler, Wisconsin
State Herbarium Climbing Bittersweet
flowers bloom in May and June. They are pollinated
by bees and other insects. Fruits are eaten by small
mammals
and birds, including American Robin, Northern Bobwhite, Wild
Turkey, Eastern Bluebird, Gray Catbird, and Eastern Gray
Squirrel. Rabbits eat leaves and twigs. Bittersweet depends on
animals to eat the fruits and poop out the seeds in new
places. This lets the plant spread its seeds to grow new
plants. Climbing Bittersweet can
cripple and kill the plants it grows on by wrapping tightly
around them. This is called "girdling." When it
girdles
a plant, the bittersweet vine becomes a parasite. Climbing Bittersweet
itself is becoming less common, because another vine,
Oriental Bittersweet, was introduced
and is taking over in places where Climbing Bittersweet
grows. Oriental Bittersweet comes from Asia and is pushing
out Climbing Bittersweet, which is native. Oriental Bittersweet can
also be a parasite, and is more aggressive (grows quicker
and more easily). This could cause problems not just for
Climbing Bittersweet, but for other plants as
well. Both vines provide
shelter for small animals and birds. Robert R. Kowal,
Wisconsin State Herbarium
Copyright, Natalia
Hamill: Clarity Connect, Inc. Dennis W. Woodland,
Wisconsin State Herbarium
