![]() It is these distinctive, hooked tendrils that give this plant its common name. It begins its ascent by means of a terminal leaflet modified into a three-pronged tendril with hooked tips. 4: Its common name comes from a unique type of tendril.Ĭat’s-claw vine scrambles across the ground until it finds something to climb on. This family is distinguished by leaves that are usually opposite and compound (consisting of multiple leaflets) flowers that are often showy and trumpet-shaped, with stamens of two lengths (two long and two short) and dry, elongated capsular fruit, which split open at maturity to release numerous flattened, winged seeds readily distributed by the wind. 3: Cat’s-claw vine belongs to the trumpet creeper family, Bignoniaceae.īignoniaceae includes the native crossvine and southern catalpa, as well as popular ornamentals such as yellow trumpet bush, trumpet trees and jacaranda. At maturity these pods turn from green to brown and open to release numerous winged seeds that are dispersed on wind currents. It has become so problematic that the Florida Department of Agriculture is in the process of adding this species to its noxious weed list, which means it will soon be illegal to propagate or sell cat’s-claw vine in Florida.įlowers are followed by long, flat, capsules. The UF/IFAS Assessment of Non-Native Species in Florida’s Natural Areas also indicates that cat’s-claw vine poses a high invasion risk in all regions of the state. The Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council lists cat’s-claw vine as a Category I invasive, which means it is expanding in range, displacing native plant species and altering natural ecological processes. ![]() Spreading rampantly as both a groundcover and a climber, it is very effective at smothering and shading out native vegetation. The Atlas of Florida Plants shows that cat’s-claw vine is growing in natural areas in about a third of Florida’s counties. Widely distributed as a garden ornamental, it subsequently escaped from cultivation and is now growing wild in the southeastern U.S., southern and eastern Africa, southern Europe, tropical Asia, Australia and a number of Pacific islands, including Hawaii. Even when it isn’t flowering, this plant is easy to recognize by its vining habit, claw-like tendrils and woody tubers. 1: Cat’s-claw vine comes from the American tropics.Ĭat’s-claw vine, Dolichandra unguis-cati, also known as cat’s claw creeper or yellow trumpet vine, is native to Mexico, Central and South America and much of the Caribbean. Look for its showy yellow flowers in treetops or littering the ground as you walk through neighborhoods and woodlands or along roadsides. Cat’s-claw vine is a common non-native weed in Florida that usually blooms from March through June.
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