Ampelopsis glandulosa — Amur peppervine
![Bark: Ampelopsis glandulosa. ~ By Elizabeth Farnsworth. ~ Copyright © 2024 New England Wild Flower Society. ~ Image Request, images[at]newenglandwild.org](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com/taxon-images-1000s1000/Vitaceae/ampelopsis-glandulosa-ba-efarnsworth.jpg)
![Fruits: Ampelopsis glandulosa. ~ By Arthur Haines. ~ Copyright © 2024 Arthur Haines. ~ arthur.d.haines[at]gmail.com](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com/taxon-images-1000s1000/Vitaceae/ampelopsis-glandulosa-brevipedunculata-fr-ahaines-b.jpg)
![Leaves: Ampelopsis glandulosa. ~ By Arthur Haines. ~ Copyright © 2024 Arthur Haines. ~ arthur.d.haines[at]gmail.com](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com/taxon-images-1000s1000/Vitaceae/ampelopsis-glandulosa-brevipedunculata-le-ahaines-a.jpg)
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Facts
Amur peppervine is also known as porcelain-berry for its almost irridescent pink-purple-azure berries. Widely planted as an ornamental, this fast-growing liana is now considered highly invasive in the forest edges, lake shores, and disturbed habitats in which it rapidly spreads. Its leaves are variable but often highly lobed, unlike those of its congener, A. cordata.
Habitat
Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats), forest edges, forests, marshes, shores of rivers or lakes
New England distribution
Adapted from BONAP data
Native: indigenous.
Non-native: introduced (intentionally or unintentionally); has become naturalized.
County documented: documented to exist in the county by evidence (herbarium specimen, photograph). Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
State documented: documented to exist in the state, but not documented to a county within the state. Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
Note: when native and non-native populations both exist in a county, only native status is shown on the map.
Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.
enlargeCharacteristics
- Habitat
- terrestrial
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Growth form
- the plant is a liana (i.e., a woody plant with a vine-like growth form)
- Leaf type
- the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
- Leaves per node
- there is one leaf per node along the stem
- Leaf blade edges
- the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
- Leaf duration
- the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
- armature on plant
- the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns
- Leaf blade length
- 60–120 mm
- Leaf blade width
- 30–110 mm
- Leaf stalk
- the leaves have leaf stalks
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is fleshy
- Bark texture
- the bark of an adult plant is thin and smooth
- Twig winter color
- brown
- Bud scale number
- there are three or more scales on the winter bud, and they overlap like shingles, with one edge covered and the other edge exposed
-
Buds or leaf scars
- Bud scale number
- there are three or more scales on the winter bud, and they overlap like shingles, with one edge covered and the other edge exposed
- Bud scar shape (Fraxinus)
- NA
- Collateral buds
- there are no collateral buds on the sides of the branches
- Superposed buds
- there are no superposed buds on the branch
-
Flowers
- Carpels fused
- the carpels are fused to one another
- Enlarged sterile flowers
- there are no enlarged sterile flowers on the plant
- Flower petal color
- yellow or green
- Flower symmetry
- there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
- Hairs on ovary (Amelanchier)
- NA
- Hypanthium present
- the flower does not have a hypanthium
- Inflorescence type
- the inflorescence is a dichasial cyme (an axis with a terminal flower, below it a pair of branches, each with a terminal flower, these branches may in turn each have a pair of branches and so on)
- Number of pistils
- 1
- Ovary position
- the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
- Petal and sepal arrangement
- the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures
- Petal appearance
- the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)
- Petal fusion
- the perianth parts are separate
- Sepal cilia (Ilex)
- NA
- Stamen number
- 5
-
Fruits or seeds
- Berry color
-
- blue
- green
- purple
- white
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is fleshy
- Fruit type (specific)
- the fruit is a berry (fleshy, with the wall enclosing one or more sections, with two or more seeds)
- Nut with spines (Fagaceae)
- NA
- Wings on fruit
- there are no wings on the fruit
-
Glands or sap
- Sap color
- the sap is clear and watery
- Stalked glands on fruit (Rosa)
- NA
-
Growth form
- Growth form
- the plant is a liana (i.e., a woody plant with a vine-like growth form)
-
Leaves
- Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
- the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
- Leaf blade base shape
- The base of the leaf blade is cordate (heart-shaped, with rounded lobes)
- Leaf blade edges
- the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
- Leaf blade edges (Acer)
- NA
- Leaf blade flatness
- the leaf is flat (planar) at the edges
- Leaf blade hairs
- the hairs on the leaf blade are different from the choices given
- Leaf blade length
- 60–120 mm
- Leaf blade scales
- there are no scales on the leaf blades
- Leaf blade shape
- the leaf blade is ovate (widest below the middle and broadly tapering at both ends)
- Leaf blade texture
-
- the leaf blade is coriaceous (has a firm, leathery texture)
- the leaf blade is herbaceous (has a leafy texture)
- Leaf blade translucent dots
- there are no translucent dots on the leaf blade
- Leaf blade width
- 30–110 mm
- Leaf duration
- the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
- Leaf lobe tips (Quercus)
- NA
- Leaf midrib glands
- the midrib of the leaf blade lacks glands on the upper surface
- Leaf stalk
- the leaves have leaf stalks
- Leaf stalk nectaries
- there are no nectaries on the leaf stalk
- Leaf teeth
- the leaf blade margin is serrate (with forward-pointing) or dentate (with outward-pointing) with medium-sized to coarse teeth
- Leaf teeth hairs (Carya)
- NA
- Leaf type
- the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
- Leaves per node
- there is one leaf per node along the stem
- Specific leaf type
- the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
-
Place
- Habitat
- terrestrial
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Specific habitat
-
- edges of forests
- forests
- man-made or disturbed habitats
- marshes
- shores of rivers or lakes
-
Scent
- Plant odor
- the plant does not have much of an odor, or it has an unpleasant or repellant odor
-
Stem, shoot, branch
- Aerial roots
- the plant has no aerial roots
- Bark texture
- the bark of an adult plant is thin and smooth
- Branch brittleness (willows only)
- NA
- Branch cross-section
- the branch is circular in cross-section, or it has five or more sides, so that there are no sharp angles
- First-year cane (Rubus)
- NA
- Lenticels on twigs
- there are clearly lenticels on the twigs
- Twig hairs
-
- the twigs have few or no hairs on them
- the twigs have hairs, but the hairs do not have glands
- Twig papillae (Vaccinium species only)
- NA
- Twig winter color
- brown
- Wings on branch
- the branch does not have wings on it
- armature on plant
- the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns
Wetland status
Not classified
In New England
Distribution
- Connecticut
- present, invasive
- Maine
- absent
- Massachusetts
- present, invasive, prohibited
- New Hampshire
- present
- Rhode Island
- present, invasive
- Vermont
- absent
Conservation status
Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.
var. brevipedunculata
- Massachusetts
- not applicable (S-rank: SNA)
Subspecies and varieties
Our variety is Ampelopsis glandulosa (Wallich) Momiy. var. brevipedunculata (Maxim.) Momiy.
From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key
2. Ampelopsis glandulosa (Wallich) Momiy. var. brevipedunculata (Maxim.) Momiy. E
Amur peppervine. Ampelopsis brevipedunculata (Maxim.) Trautv.; A. heterophylla (Thunb.) Sieb. & Zucc. var. amurensis Planch.; Ampelopsis heterophylla (Thunb.) Sieb. & Zucc. var. brevipedunculata C.L. Li; Cissus brevipedunculata Maxim.; Vitis brevipedunculata (Maxim.) Dippel. • CT, MA, NH, RI. Roadsides, waste areas, forest fragments, pond shores, upper edge of tidal marshes.
Native to North America?
No
Sometimes confused with
- Ampelopsis cordata:
- leaf blades toothed to obscurely lobed and branchlets glabrous (vs. A. glandulosa, with leaf blades toothed to lobed, at least some on the plant with 3-5 evident lobes, and branchlets pubescent at least when young).
Synonyms
- Ampelopsis brevipedunculata (Maxim.) Trautv.
- Ampelopsis heterophylla (Thunb.) Sieb. & Zucc. var. amurensis Planch.
- Ampelopsis heterophylla (Thunb.) Sieb. & Zucc. var. amurensis Planch.
- Ampelopsis heterophylla (Thunb.) Sieb. & Zucc. var. brevipedunculata C.L. Li
- Vitis brevipedunculata (Maxim.) Dippel.