Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Monocots: Liliales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Smilax rotundifolia
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 rotundifolia
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Smilax rotundifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-02-004:
Smilax rotundifolia FAMILY Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH The woody Smilaxes of the United States (Coker, 1944)
Smilax rotundifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Smilax rotundifolia
COMMON NAME:
Common Greenbrier, Common Catbrier, Bullbrier, Horsebrier
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_smro_001_lvd
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide pnd_smro_004_lvd
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JK Marlow s050126_ab
January Greenville County SC
Roadside
A high-climbing glabrous vine, often attaining heights of more than 10m, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
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JK Marlow s050126_c
January Greenville County SC
Leaf apex acute or acuminate. Leaf base rounded, cordate or truncate, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
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JK Marlow jkm120407_782
April Spartanburg County SC
Stems green, coarse, sharply to obscurely quadrangular, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
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JK Marlow s040419_d
April Greenville County SC
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JK Marlow jkm060506_134
May Anderson County SC
Clemson Forest
Leaves thin, subcoriaceous [that is, somewhat or almost coriaceous], per Weakley's Flora.
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JK Marlow jkm060525_004
May Greenville County SC
Parking lot
Flowers in axillary umbels, perianth greenish, campanulate, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
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JK Marlow jkm060525_010
May Greenville County SC
Parking lot
Peduncles 0.5-1.5cm long; pedicels of staminate flwrs 5-12mm, pistillate 3-7mm, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
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JK Marlow jkm210513_0248
May Oconee County SC
Boone's Creek Preserve
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JK Marlow jkm210513_0250
May Oconee County SC
Boone's Creek Preserve
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JK Marlow jkm210513_0252
May Oconee County SC
Boone's Creek Preserve
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JK Marlow s060525_a
May Greenville County SC
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JK Marlow s060525_b
May Greenville County SC
Stem woody, usually with prickles. Plant climbing, ascending or trailing, per Weakley's Flora.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Smilax rotundifolia
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Smilax rotundifolia
FAMILY
Smilacaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Smilax rotundifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 041-02-004:
Smilax rotundifolia
FAMILY
Liliaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
The woody Smilaxes of the United States (Coker, 1944)
Smilax rotundifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Smilax rotundifolia
1402
Woody vine
Perennial
Dioecious
Habitat: Dry-mesic to mesic forests and woodlands, bottomland and riparian forests, swamps, pond margins, bluffs, flatwoods, prairies, old fields, fencerows, pastures, roadsides, 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:
Deciduous/Partially evergreen
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring
Yellowish-green
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
- How to Recognize Shrubs (Grimm, 1966) p072
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p053
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p356
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p419
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p383
- 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) p254
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