Woodbine | Parthenocissus inserta

Woodbine is a shade-tolerant vine that has 5-leafed foliage followed by deep blue berries in the fall.

Woodbine is a shade-tolerant vine that has 5-leafed foliage followed by deep blue berries in the fall.

Woodbine, also known as Parthenocissus vitacea, and Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) are often treated as one species, the names interchangeable, but they are indeed different with a couple obvious distinctions and several subtle differences. The obvious distinctions are: Virginia Creeper has aerial roots, hairy leaf stalks and new stems, and tendrils with up to 10 short branches (1½ inches long or less) that eventually develop flat adhesive disks or pads at the tip; Woodbine lacks aerial roots, has hairless stalks and stems, and its tendrils branch only 2 or 3 times, the branches more than 1½ inches long and not normally developing disks at the tip, but wedge themselves into cracks and expand to hold themselves in place