A poisonous wide-spreading shrub, erect and bushy, or vine that attaches to trees with adventitious roots. All parts contain a heavy oil that causes inflammation, in winter as well as in summer. It produces white fruits.
BUDS: Scaleless and hairy; pinched at base.
TWIGS: Brown and climbing; aerial rootlets attached; old stems covered with dark fibers.
HABITAT: Woods and thickets.
RANGE: Quebec to British Columbia, south to Florida, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.