| winter creeper | USDA PLANTS Symbol: EUFO5 U.S. Nativity: Exotic Habit: Vines Shrub or Subshrub |
| Euonymus fortunei (Turcz.) Hand.-Maz. |
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Taxonomic Rank: Magnoliopsida: Celastrales: Celastraceae |
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| Synonym(s): climbing euonymus | |
| Native Range: China (REHD); cent. & west. China (BAIL); | |
Winter creeper is an evergreen, woody vine that invades forests throughout the eastern United States. The plant can be a small shrub, growing in mats along the forest floor to 3 ft. (0.9 m) in height, or a vine climbing trees to heights of 40-70 ft. (12.2-21.3 m). The opposite leaves are dark green, oval, slightly toothed, glossy, thick, < 1 in. (2.5 cm) long and often with silvery-white venation. The young stems are green, becoming light gray and corky with age. Flowers are inconspicuous, yellow-green, five petaled and develop in mid-summer. Plants usually only flower when climbing and almost never when trailing along the ground. Fruit are pinkish-red capsules that open to show orange seeds. Winter creeper aggressively invades open forests, forest margins, and openings. The dense ground cover often resulting from an infestation can displace native understory species and restrict tree seedling establishment. Winter creeper can also smother and kill shrubs and small trees. Winter creeper is native to Asia and was first introduced into the United States in 1907 as an ornamental ground cover plant. |
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Identification, Biology, Control and Management Resources
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| Selected Images from Invasive.org | View All Images at Invasive.org |
 Foliage; May James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Plant(s); May James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Foliage; May James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Infestation; Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Feature(s); Stem with small patch of aerial roots in May James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Feature(s); Stem with distinctive buds in May James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Feature(s); May James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Stem(s); December James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Foliage; Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Plant(s); Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Plant(s); Chris Evans, Illinois Wildlife Action Plan, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
 Foliage; with fruit Keith Langdon, National Park Service, Bugwood.org Additional Resolutions & Image Usage |
| EDDMapS Distribution: This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts and records obtained from USDA Plants Database. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org Alternative content
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 State(s) Where Reported invasive. Based on state level agency and organization lists of invasive plants from WeedUS database. Alternative content
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