Native Plants

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A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

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Tuesday - September 21, 2010

From: Cleveland, OH
Region: Midwest
Topic: Problem Plants, Vines
Title: Plant identification of vine in Ohio
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

I have a vine in my forest that grows up trees, that could eventually pull them over. It has roundleaves and prickers on the stem. What is this vine so I can research it?

ANSWER:

This sounds a lot like Smilax rotundifolia (Roundleaf greenbrier). Even though it is native to North America and Ohio, it is listed in Invasive and Noxious Weeds of the Northeast. Here are photos from Duke University and from Discover Life. If you are wanting to eliminate this vine, you can read a suggestion from Tree-Tech.com.