You may see this colorfully ornamented vine and say, "are those colorful wild grapes"? Don't be fooled: it's the invasive Porcelain berry plant!
This plant is in the grape family and can be mistaken for native species of wild grape.
The fruits that lend the plant its namesake appear in September-October and are colorful, varying from blue, green, pink, turquoise, light blue, black, and lavender. Wild grapes are uniformly dark purple to black in color when ripe. Porcelain berries are also held upwards while wild grape fruits droop downward, like the grapes you see in vineyards.
Note of caution: while wild grapes are edible, porcelain berries are poisonous through ingestion.
Be wary:
The Porcelain berry was first introduced into the U.S. in the 1870's and its vigorous growth habit and ornamental fruits have made it a favorite in landscape designs. Though the colorful berries are appealing, this plant has negative consequences on our native habitats:
It spreads very quickly since birds and other animals eat the fruit and disperse the seeds. The tendril-climbing vines can grow taller than 20 ft, quickly covering and shading out native plants.
Luckily, there are many appealing alternatives. Protect our native habitat by planting these non-invasives instead:
Trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), American wisteria (Wisteria frutescens), Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), Virgin’s bower (Clematis virginiana)
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