Field Guide

American black currant is uncommon in Missouri, known from only one location in Schuyler County. The leaves have orange, resinous glands on the undersurface. A spineless shrub, it bears flowers, and later black berries, in clusters of 6–15.

Missouri gooseberry is our state’s most widespread and common gooseberry. People brave its prickly stems to collect its tart, tasty fruits to make pies, jams, and jellies.

Round-leaved catbrier is a climbing, perennial woody vine to 20 feet long with tendrils and stout spines, sometimes forming tangled thickets. In Missouri, it is found mainly in the Bootheel and nearby southeastern Ozarks.

Bristly greenbrier is a stout woody vine with bristlelike black spines, climbing high by tendrils to a length of 40 feet. It is the most common greenbrier in Missouri and is found statewide.

Red grape is an attractive, high-climbing, slender, delicate vine named for the color of its branches. It occurs mostly in eastern Missouri, especially along the Mississippi and Missouri rivers.

Summer grape is a vigorous, woody, wild grapevine climbing to a height of 35 feet. It grows mostly in the southern two-thirds of Missouri, often in drier situations than many other grape species.

Raccoon grape is a woody vine climbing by tendrils to a length of 60 feet. The most aggressive native vine in the state, it can smother small- to medium-sized trees.

Peppervine is a rather slender, upright vine, either high-climbing or bushy, tendrils present or absent. It favors wet or moist, low, wooded areas in southern and eastern Missouri.

Winter grape is a wild grapevine that can climb up to 50 feet. It occurs in low woods and along streams, in thickets, and in fencerows. It’s common in the southern two-thirds of Missouri.

Frost grape is a vigorous vine climbing to 60 feet in length using tendrils. It is scattered statewide, growing in bottomlands, along streams, in low, wet woods, at bases of bluffs, and in thickets.