The Bittersweet Vine

The story of bittersweet is truly a tale of two species – three, technically. Its cast of characters is also aptly named, for as beautiful as all three of the bittersweet vines are in bloom, two of the three species known as bittersweet are as deadly as they are beautiful.

Celastrus scendens

Let’s talk turkey – or rather, Latin – for a minute. Celastrus scendens (or ‚”False Bittersweet”) is a showy and ‚”well-behaved” vine, indigenous to the eastern and Midwestern portions of North America. Its leaves are ovate in form, with twirling, twiggy vines that are relatively smooth to the touch. Its orangey-red berries appear only at the tips of their vines. Once abundant in the United States from Maine, not quite south to Florida and throughout the northern and central regions, C. scandens is now so rare that it is on many states’ endangered species list. So, while it may be tempting to snip branches of the colorful vine when it’s at its showiest in the fall, Celastrus scendens needs to be left alone.

Celastrus orbiculatus

Celastrus orbiculatus, an Asian cousin imported to this country in 1860, according to the U.S. Park Service, is now far more common in these same regions. Today, it is as successful as Purple Loosestrife, taking over territory once the domain of C. scandens. Oriental Bittersweet, its common name, has thorny vines, and is so prolific that it eventually strangles whatever support structure it rests upon- making it a plant ‚”pest,” actually. Oriental bittersweet’s leaves are more rounded than False Bittersweet’s and its orangey-red berries grow all along its vine. Aside from its faster growth habit than False Bittersweet, its berries also seem to be more attractive to birds, who spread them far and wide and Oriental Bittersweet’s seeds germinate than False Bittersweet’s – two characteristics which keep it on the march through the woodlands, keeping its more well-behaved cousin at a significant disadvantage in the ‚”Survival of the Fittest” game.

The third species is less closely related to Oriental Bittersweet and False Bittersweet, though it bears a similar name, growth habit and general appearance.

Solanum dulcamara

Solanum dulcamara (or ‚”True Bittersweet”) is another import to North America. S. dulcamara is actually a member of the nightshade family and is also commonly known as Nightshade Bittersweet. Since it had already claimed the ‚”bittersweet” appellation in its native Europe long before plants indigenous to the New World were actually classified and named, it managed to keep the ‚”True Bittersweet” tag on this continent. True or Nightshade Bittersweet is every bit as showy as the other two species. Nightshade Bittersweet’s berries begin green, then turn to orange and, finally, to red over the course of a season – minus the flirty little seed casings that give the other two species so much of their charm. It’s also not unusual to see a Nightshade Bittersweet vine with red, orange and green berries – all at the same time – making them very attractive to birds and much desired as a natural holiday decoration, indoors or out.

Medicinal Properties

Of the three, only Nightshade Bittersweet is truly poisonous, if eaten; although both False Bittersweet and Oriental Bittersweet will also have a dramatic impact on your entire intestinal system, if they are ingested. Interestingly enough, 19th century American Herbals, such as King’s American Dispensary (1898), note that both Nightshade Bittersweet and False Bittersweet can be used as a diuretic. Depending upon the recipe (and the species) either the twigs or the vines were used. The herbal suggests collecting the bark and/or twigs late in the autumn, after the berries have dropped and drying them for future use.

In the end, the name bittersweet seems to come more from the taste of the bark/twigs (bitter…then a bit acrid…then sweetish)…and not from one species’ strangling beauty or another’s beautiful, though poisonous, nature. But some have commented that the name also has as much to do with the wild, fiery beauty of the berries, set stark against the sleeping woods and snowy blanket of the winter…a bittersweet reminder of warmer seasons so recently passed.