Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Liliales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Smilax glauca
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may also want to check Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina
Learn more from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina website.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Smilax glauca
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Smilax glauca
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Smilax glauca
INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Smilax glauca var. glauca
INCLUDING Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Smilax glauca var. leurophylla
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-02-007:
Smilax glauca FAMILY Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH The woody Smilaxes of the United States (Coker, 1944)
Smilax glauca
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Smilax glauca
COMMON NAME:
Whiteleaf Greenbrier, Wild Sarsaparilla, Sawbrier
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_smgl_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm0401c_05
January Pickens County SC
Roadside
Climbing or scrambling woody vine with thorns, 2-20m long, per Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm0401c_06
January Pickens County SC
Roadside
SC's only species of Smilax with leaves whitish beneath, per Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001).
)
JK Marlow jkm200602_5579
June Spartanburg County SC
Lower stem often bristly. Leaves often variegated with lighter green above, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm071020_050
October Greenville County SC
Tall Pines Wildlife Management Area
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmsglauca_0
October
)
JK Marlow snm151030_smilax1_227e
October Greenville County SC
Blue Wall Preserve
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Smilax glauca
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Smilax glauca
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Smilax glauca
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Smilax glauca
INCLUDING
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Smilax glauca var. glauca
INCLUDING
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Smilax glauca var. leurophylla
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-02-007:
Smilax glauca
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
The woody Smilaxes of the United States (Coker, 1944)
Smilax glauca
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Smilax glauca
1398
Woody vine
Perennial
Dioecious
Habitat: Dry to mesic forests and woodlands, bottomland and riparian forests, bluffs, hardwood flatwoods, pine flatwoods, prairies, old fields, fencerows, pastures, roadsides; uncommon in wetlands, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
IS THE PLANT "ARMED"?
Stems usually armed with broadbased prickles
LEAVES:
Partially evergreen
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
Yellowish/Brownish
Radially symmetrical
6 tepals
6 stamens in staminate flowers
Superior ovary
Unisexual
Flowers in axillary umbels
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Bluish-black
Berry
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005) p290
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p232
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p289
- How to Recognize Shrubs (Grimm, 1966) p072
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p052
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p356
- Guide to the Plants of Granite Outcrops (Murdy & Carter, 2000) p44
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p439
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p21
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p314
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p332
- Wildflowers of the Sandhills Region (Sorrie, 2011) p140
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