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Wild flowers of the north-eastern states

Chapter 19: VINE FAMILY. VITACEÆ.
By Ellen Miller
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Nature/Gardening/Animals

About This Book

This illustrated manual gathers 308 common wildflowers of the northeastern United States, each drawn life-size and accompanied by plain-language descriptions emphasizing habit, color, and growth rather than technical dissection. Organized by floral families in the sequence of Gray's Manual and arranged for seasonal bloom, entries include leaves, stems, and often whole growth, with occasional shrubs, vines, and fruit shown where notable. Aimed at amateur naturalists, it favors recognizable traits and folk names to ease identification, offers practical notes on variations and habitat, and pairs accurate botanical classification with accessible, pictorial presentation.

VINE FAMILY.
VITACEÆ.

Virginia Creeper.Ampelopsis quinquefolia.
American Ivy.

Found on rich ground, in woods and wayside thickets, blossoming in July.

This is a high-climbing vine, with tough, woody-fibred stems, covered with a rough reddish-gray bark.

The large leaf is compound, with the 5 leaflets starting from the same point; the leaflet is taper-pointed, notched on the edge, smooth, shining, of a thin texture, and dark green color. The leaves, alternate in growth, are set on foot-stems 2 or 3 inches long.

The flowers are small, and inconspicuous, with their parts in fives and of a yellowish-green color; they grow in irregularly branching clusters from the angles of the leaves.

The round blue-black berries, on thick red stems, ripen in October. The leaves turn a vivid scarlet, which flames out among the autumn colors. The vine climbs by the aid of tendrils which terminate in flat sucker-like discs. It is easily transplanted and often seen around dwellings.