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Woody > Celastrus > Celastrus scandens > Celastrus scandens

Celastrus scandens


American Bittersweet Vine




Family
Celastraceae
Genus
Celastrus
Species
scandens
Category
Woody
Type
Vine
Pronunciation
USDA Hardiness Zone
3-8
Height
6 m (vine)
Spread
3 m (vine)
Photographs
Description and Growing Information
Flowering Period
June
General Description
A fast growing, 6 m, vigorous, deciduous twining vine which engulfs every fence in sight.
Landscape
May scramble over rock piles, fences and old trees. The fruit is often used in arrangements.
Shape
Climbing vine
Growth
Fast
ID Characteristic
A fast growing climbing vine with lustrous dark green leaves and yellow orange fruit that is often used for dried flower arrangements.
Pests
Diseases include; leaf spots, powdery mildews, crown gall, stem canker, Euonumus scale, aphids and two-marked treehopper.
Habitat
Canada to South Dakota and New Mexico.
Flower/Leaf Bud Description
Buds are brown, small, sessile, solitary, sub-globose and with about 6 hard mucronate scales.
Leaf Description
Leaves are lustrous dark green, glabrous, serrulate and have a broad cuneate at its base. Leaves are 4-8 cm in length.
Flower Description
Flowers are Polygamo-dioecious but primarily dioecious. They are a yellowish white colour and borne 4-8 cm long.
Fruit Description
Fruit is a three-lobed capsule with a yellow orange colour and crimson seeds on the inside. It is extensively collected and sold for dried flower arrangements.
Colour Description
Leaves are a deep glossy green in the summer and a greenish yellow in autumn.
Texture Description
Medium in leaf and medium coarse texture in the winter.
Notable Specimens
Joany’s Woods, West Williams, Middlesex County, Ontario, Canada.
Propagation
Seeds have a dormant embryo and require after-ripening for germination; there is some evidence that the seed coat may have an inhibiting effect upon germination. Seeds or dried fruits should be stratified in moist sand for 2-6 months at 5°C. Root cuttings collected in the autumn and cut into 50 mm lengths and insert vertically into pots or flats barley covering the top. Water and place in a cold frame until growth appears and then pot individually.
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