Cissus verticillata (L.) Nicolson & C.E.Jarvis
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Authority
Acevedo-Rodríguez, Pedro & collaborators. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78: 1-581.
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Family
Vitaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Herbaceous, climbing or creeping vine 2-10 m long; stems fleshy, cylindrical to flattened on older portions, grayish, glabrous, swollen at nodes, sometimes zigzag-shaped. Leaves simple; blades 5-12 x 3.8-6.5 cm, ovate to oblong-lanceolate, fleshy-chartaceous, glabrous, the apex acute to rounded, the base cuneate, truncate, or cordate, the margins minutely toothed; petioles 2-5 cm long; stipules auriculate, 2.5-3.5 mm long, straw-colored. Cymes opposite to leaves, the peduncles glabrous, 2-4 cm long, many-branched; flowers including pedicels green to yellowish in some individuals, while others with reddish pedicels and red or pinkish flowers. Calyx green or reddish, 0.7-1.0 mm long; petals 2-2.5 mm long, yellowish or pinkish, oblong-lanceolate, deciduous; disk 0.5-0.8 mm tall, bright yellow. Berry depressed-globose, 7-10 mm wide, turning from green to black, shiny.
Distribution and Ecology - A common weed of open disturbed, dry to moist habitats. Center Line Road (A2420), Emmaus (A2820), Susannaberg (A2088). Also on St. Croix, St. Thomas, and Tortola; southern United States to northern South America, including the West Indies.
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Discussion
Common name: pudding vine.