Monday, June 02, 2003

Now is the time!

Right about now would be a great time for you to rid yourself of that nasty Asiatic bittersweet vine (Celastrus orbiculatus), since the plants are just coming into flower 'round here in Massachusetts. The flowers are fairly easy to recognize (photos below), but just to make sure that you aren't looking at the rare American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens), make sure that the flowers are coming from in between the leaves; American bittersweet flowers only at the end of each vine branch (see here for more info). You can easily pull small infestations up by the roots to remove them, and because the fruit hasn't yet developed, you won't have to worry as much about next year's crop spreading either.

Asiatic bittersweet vine
female flowers of Asiatic bittersweetmale flowers of Asiatic bittersweet

No comments: