Jim Gilbert's Journal

September 25, 1998

     American Bittersweet

American bittersweet is a twining woody vine or shrub, which at times climbs up trees to a height of 30 feet. Green leaves up to about four inches long provide heavy cover until autumn, when they turn yellow before dropping. The inconspicuous greenish-white flowers can be found in June.

On female plants, yellow fruit capsules burst open to reveal spectacular orange-colored seeds in September. These bright seeds, in clusters, stay on the vines through the winter or until birds such as eastern bluebirds, American robins, and bobwhites eat them. Berried branches gathered before frost and dried will remain colorful for months indoors.

Common in thickets, on river banks, and in woods throughout the deciduous forests of Minnesota, American bittersweet is native from Ontario to Manitoba and south to North Carolina and New Mexico. Bittersweet is often planted as a climber near trellises, arches, posts, porches, and similar places.