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Parthenocissus tricuspidata

Common name:	Boston Ivy	Family:	Vitaceae
Author:	(Siebold.&Zucc.)Planch.	Botanical references:	11, 58, 200
Synonyms:	Ampelopsis veitchii (Hort.), Ampelopsis tricuspidata (Siebold.&Zucc.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - China, Japan, Korea. A garden escape in Britain.
Habitat:	Thickets and woods in hills and mountains[58].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	P. tricuspidata 'Veitc'[H] P. tricuspidata f. tricuspidata[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Boston Ivy [P,DEN1,H], Boston-ivy [B],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	cuspidata = with stiff point; tricuspidata = 3 pointed;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Rhamnales. Grape family

Physical Characteristics

A decidious climber growing to 18m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 4 and is frost tender. It is in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from October to November. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge, Ground Cover.

Edible Uses

Sap; Sweetener.

Sap - sweet[177]. The sap flows quite freely when it is harvested in the spring, as the plant comes into new growth, and can be used as a sugar substitute[105].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Ground cover.

This species can be grown as a ground cover plant in a sunny position[188]. Plants should be spaced about 2.5 metres apart each way[208]. They are very vigorous, however, and would soon swamp smaller plants[K].

Cultivation details

Requires a well-drained moisture retentive fertile soil[200]. Succeeds in any fertile soil in sun or part shade[202].
Dormant plants are hardy to about -15°c[200], though the young growth in spring can be damaged by late frosts.
A very ornamental plant[1], there are several named varieties[182].
The flowers are only produced on mature stems[202] and plants usually only fruit after a long hot summer[219].
A rampant climbing plant, clinging by means of round pad-like suckers on the tendrils[11]. It can become a bit of a nuisance by growing into gutters[182].
Plants are very tolerant of trimming and can be cut right back to within 1 metre of the base if required to rejuvenate the plant[202]. Any pruning is best carried out in the spring[219].
Dislikes transplanting[11], plants often put on very little growth in the year after planting out, though they are then fast growing[202].
Plants often hybridize and so do not always come true from seed[200].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame[200]. Stored seed requires stratifying for 6 weeks at 5°c and should be sown as early in the year as possible[200]. Germination is variable. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 7 - 10cm taken at a node (ensure that it has at least 2 true buds), July/August in a frame[78]. Easy to root but they do not always survive the first winter[182].
Basal hardwood cuttings of current seasons growth, 10 - 12 cm long, autumn in a frame[200].
Layering[200].

Cultivars

'': There are some named forms for this species, but these have been developed for their ornamental value and not for their other uses. Unless you particularly require the special characteristics of any of these cultivars, we would generally recommend that you grow the natural species for its useful properties. We have, therefore, not listed the cultivars in this database[K].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
[DEN] Data _ Photos (Good Identification info) from the Virginia Tech's Dendrology Deptarments' Tree Fact Sheets.

References for Ampelopsis veitchii (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database

References for Parthenocissus tricuspidata 'Veitc' (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database

References for Parthenocissus tricuspidata f. tricuspidata (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

References for the family Vitaceae.

To be included in the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[58] Ohwi. G. Flora of Japan. (English translation) Smithsonian Institution 1965
The standard work. Brilliant, but not for the casual reader.

[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[182] Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray 1992 ISBN 0-7195-5043-2
Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.

[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[202] Davis. B. Climbers and Wall Shrubs. Viking. 1990 ISBN 0-670-82929-3
Contains information on 2,000 species and cultivars, giving details of cultivation requirements. The text is terse but informative.

[208] Thomas. G. S. Plants for Ground Cover J. M. Dent & Sons 1990 ISBN 0-460-12609-1
An excellent detailled book on the subject, very comprehensive.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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