Gail writes:
Good Day: the quest continues to identify the plant in last weeks blog. Winnie sent in the lone comment; could it be some type of bittersweet? Initially I too thought the same, as I used the berry to try & narrow down the the options; but without success. While the berries offered a good start,
as master gardeners we know we must look at all aspects of the plant if we are to identify a plant accurately. (below is a refresher picture of the plant in ??) With not having much opportunity at this time of the year for outdoor learning, we (Linda, & I and a secret partner) have decided to make this quest educational….
Winnie did not mention which bittersweet. So let’s start with an intro: As you all know there are two types of bittersweet-the oriental and the native. Paul will be helping me with the native version. As for the oriental–all I had to do was drive around Bedford Twsp to find it—-patches of blazing orange dot many of the roadside ditches, making it easy to spot.
above: note the structure of the oriental bittersweet. An entanglement of leafless branches… an obstructive growth along the ditch banks. This plant is extremely heavy and if allowed to grow into say a nearby tree- it can and most certainly will bring down the branches in time. It is very prolific
and despite it’s fall beauty– is considered to be INVASIVE. It has become so prolific that efforts to rid protected areas of this plant are underway as we speak.
BELOW: the plant in question–what is different?? Structure, leaves–seed pods???
Speaking of seed pods—–let’s take a closer look. Here are two pics of the seed pods from the oriental bittersweet.
We will discuss the placement of the seedpods when we compare the native bittersweet…………
Let’s look closer at the seeds, compare the two the oriental bittersweet…….and the unknown
the oriental bittersweet seed. See the defined divisions within the seed pod?
Open one and you reveal a white seed in each divided section of that pod.
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Now look at the berry of the unknown plant.
Some very obvious differences I would say. Not just in color, but in the very structure. Open one of the berries on this plant and again we find one seed.
What do you see?? That seed looks an awful lot like the seed from the bittersweet plant. I think we can safely say it isn’t the oriental bittersweet plant but Could we be looking at a plant that may be in the bittersweet family??? Keep reading, together and with help from our secret partner; we can & will conquer this quest. To assist your research–here is another clue. This plant reseeds easily
once it lands on the ground; but performs as a ground cover before it matures into a woody shrub….(duh–never even gave that a thought). Here is a picture depicting that growth habit-the mother plant is just to the top right side of the picture.
With help from our MG member Paul who is well versed in native plants–we will
study the native version of bittersweet……..gk
Monroe County Master Gardener Association 
These are great pictures and text. I’m all about “to be continued”. All the native bittersweet I have observed is growing has been up on another bush or in a tree but nothing on the ground. Very interesting!
Yes that was fun.. but I didn’t do any research – just enjoyed comparing the pictures. there’s a big difference in how the seed pods attach to the branches (or vines). Bitter sweet fruit is reddish orange and hangs in small sparse clusters (resembling grapes ) at the ends of fragile stems on the branches. I also have observed yellowed leaves clinging to the branches in the late fall, The invasive plant has prolific berries and is a tangled mess. Very few leaves when the seed pods ripen and the fruit is orange. I observed a small spot of the invasive plant on my neighbors fence a few years ago. Now it has invaded and covered an area about eight feet wide. Whats the best way to get
rid of it?