Oriental Bittersweet
Celastrus orbiculatus

Oriental bittersweet is a large, invasive vine that is often noticed for the bright red fruits that persist into winter.

Each red fruit of the Oriental bittersweet plant is surrounded by a yellow aril. The fruits grow the length of the vine in contrast to the American bittersweet which only grows fruit on the terminal ends of the branches. (Photo courtesy of Sara Rall/iNaturalist CC BY-NC, toned)

Appearance

It is a large, deciduous woody vine with light brown dark and bright red fruits. The leaves are two to four inches-long with toothed edges. The small, green flowers form clusters near the leaf axils. Each fruit is surrounded by a yellow aril. The roots are bright orange.

Predators

Some birds including ruffed grouse and pheasants eat the fruits of the plant. Some mammals such as squirrels also eat the fruits. There are not any animals that eat enough of the plant to keep it from spreading.

Reproduction and Life Cycle

Oriental bittersweet has male and female plants. Both will produce flowers in the spring and the female plants will produce fruit in the fall. The bright red fruits persist into winter. The seeds are most viable in their first year. Mature vines are prolific seed producers.

Did You Know?

  • It is also known by the names of asiatic bittersweet, round-leaved bittersweet, oriental staff vine and climbing spindle berry.

  • The arils on asiatic bittersweet are more yellow than the orange color of American bittersweet. The fruits grow along the length of the stem on asiatic bittersweet and only grow on the ends of stems on American bittersweet. Asiatic bittersweet has textured bark and American bittersweet has smooth bark.

  • Asiatic bittersweet is harmful to native plants because it grows over natural vegetation and spirals up trees. As the vine grows, it shades out native vegetation and girdles trees.

Sources and Additional Information

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Plants & Trees Trees & Shrubs Forests & Uplands