Crow’s Nest plants we love: climbing hempvine

On a hike through the cattail swamp Eloise spotted this vine flowering and climbing on some shrubs. It is climbing hempvine, Mikania scandens, a native perennial that I had never noticed before.

There are a couple members of this genus that are native elsewhere that can be invasive when introduced to new habitats. Even this one, native to the Eastern and Southern U.S., is listed as a noxious weed where it was introduced to Hawaii.

The flowers are white to pinkish, found in late summer. This late in the season most of the flowers had already gone to seed.

Posted by Daniel Barringer on October 14. 2012.