Shrub · Vitaceae
Virginia Creeper
Parthenocissus quinquefolia
A tough native vine that trades brilliant fall color for a constant need to keep it in bounds.
Full sun
Every 7–14 days
USDA 3–9
30–50 ft · 9.1–15.2 m
Overview
Virginia creeper is a fast, woody climber native across eastern North America, grown for the fiery scarlet color it throws in fall. Its leaves come in fives, fanned out like fingers, which is the quickest way to tell it from three-leaflet poison ivy. Give it a fence, an arbor, or a bare bank and it will cover the ground in a season or two.
What makes it climb is also what makes it a handful. The vine grips with disk-tipped holdfasts that stick to almost anything, so it races up trees, walls, and trellises alike, reaching well past head height. That same grip pries at paint and mortar, which is why this plant wants room of its own, away from the house.
It asks for almost nothing once it takes hold. Sun or deep shade, sand or clay, drought or cold down to -40°F (-40°C) all suit it fine. The catch comes later in the year, when it sets clusters of dark blue-black berries that look like small grapes but are poisonous to people and animals alike.
Care
The short version: plant it in almost any well-drained soil, in full sun for the best fall color or shade if that's what you have, water until it settles in, then mostly just prune to keep it where you want it.
Light
Virginia creeper takes anything from full sun to full shade, which is rare in a climbing plant. Sun brings out the deepest red in fall, while shade still grows a healthy vine but with quieter, more muted color.
Water
Give a young plant a soak every 7 to 14 days while it roots in, letting the top half of the soil dry between drinks. Once established it turns very drought tolerant and needs little extra water beyond what the weather brings.
Soil
It adapts to clay, loam, or sand without complaint, asking only for decent drainage and some organic matter. The pH range is wide, anywhere from 5.0 to 8.0, so most garden soil works as is.
Temperature
Few vines are this hardy. It rides out winter down to -40°F (-40°C) and summer heat up to 100°F (38°C), which is what lets it thrive across such a broad stretch of the country.
Humidity
Ordinary outdoor humidity suits it fine, so there's nothing to track. Good airflow does more good than any humidity level, since crowded, still air is what brings on the occasional leaf spot or mildew.
Feeding
This vigorous native rarely needs feeding at all. If growth looks weak, a light balanced fertilizer in spring is plenty, and overfeeding only pushes more of the rampant growth you'll be cutting back later.
Pruning
Pruning is the main job here. Cut it hard in late winter or early spring, then trim through the season to hold it off masonry, gutters, shutters, and wiring, because an unchecked vine climbs fast and far.
Repotting
Grown in the ground it never needs repotting, and even in a container it rarely asks for it. Move it up a pot size only if roots circle the base or water runs straight through without soaking in.
Size & spacing
Left to climb, this vine reaches a remarkable 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 m) with a spread of 5 to 10 feet (1.5 to 3 m). Give it that kind of room on a sturdy support and keep it well clear of the house.
When to plant
This is a hardy perennial vine, not a seasonal crop, so timing is about getting it established rather than racing a frost. Set new plants out in spring or fall, expect the small greenish flowers from May into July, and watch the dark berries and famous red color arrive in late summer through fall.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: spring or fall
- Harvest: Greenish-white insignificant flowers May to July, followed by blue-black berries in late summer to fall
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 3–9
Temperature: down to -40°C
Troubleshooting
Virginia creeper is healthy to a fault, and most of its trouble is about size rather than sickness. The big one is the vine climbing where it shouldn't and clinging to walls. Spot the few cosmetic leaf problems early and you can keep this plant looking its best.
Vine gripping walls and leaving sticky marks behind
Those clinging pads are adhesive holdfasts, the disk-tipped tendrils this vine uses to scale anything in reach. Left alone near a building, they pull at paint, work into mortar, and clog gutters, and the residue stays stuck even after you tear the stems away. Cut it back hard, peel the stems off before the disks set, and steer the growth onto a trellis well clear of the house.
Fix:
- Cut vines back hard and pull stems off surfaces before disks set
- Trim regularly through the growing season to keep growth in bounds
- Redirect onto a sturdy trellis, fence, or arbor away from buildings
Spotted leaves or a dusty white film on the foliage
Dark spots point to fungal leaf spot, and a chalky white coating means powdery mildew, both more common in shade and damp, still air. Neither does much real harm to a vine this tough, so the fix is usually cosmetic. Thin out crowded growth, clear away the worst leaves, and water at the roots so the foliage stays dry.
Fix:
- Improve air circulation by thinning crowded growth
- Remove and dispose of badly affected foliage
- Avoid wetting foliage when watering
Chewed or stippled leaves with insects on them
Japanese beetles are the usual culprits, skeletonizing leaves down to the veins, while leafhoppers stipple the foliage and scale sit as bumps along the stems. An established vine shrugs off most of it. Pick beetles into soapy water, hose or prune out small outbreaks, and reach for horticultural oil only when scale gets out of hand.
Fix:
- Hand-pick beetles into soapy water
- Hose off or prune out localized infestations
- Treat scale with horticultural oil if severe
Toxicity
Treat the whole plant as off the menu. Every part carries sharp calcium oxalate crystals, and the dark berries pack oxalic acid on top of that, which is why they have poisoned cats, dogs, horses, livestock, and people. The fruit is the real danger, looking so much like wild grapes that children and pets are tempted to eat it.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Toxic
The whole plant carries sharp calcium oxalate crystals that sting on contact, so a cat that bites a leaf or berry drools hard, paws at its mouth, and may vomit. Swelling around the lips and throat can follow.
Dogs Toxic
A dog that chews the foliage or the grape-like berries gets a burning mouth, heavy drooling, and an upset stomach with vomiting or diarrhea. The berries hold the most oxalic acid and cause the worst of it.
Horses Toxic
Grazing on the vine irritates a horse's mouth and gut, bringing on drooling, mouth pain, and colicky discomfort. Keep paddock fences clear of any creeper climbing in.
Rabbits Toxic
The same crystals make this no food for a rabbit. Even a nibble can leave the mouth sore and the gut unsettled, so keep cuttings and stray fruit out of the hutch.
Livestock Toxic
Cattle, goats, and sheep that browse the leaves or berries show mouth irritation, drooling, and digestive upset. Pull the vine from pasture edges before stock find it.
Birds Toxic
Wild birds eat the ripe berries and scatter the seed, but the acid-heavy fruit is not safe for pet birds. Expect mouth irritation and digestive trouble if a companion bird gets into it.
People Caution
No part of this plant is food. The dark berries look like wild grapes and have poisoned people, children most of all, leaving a burning mouth and throat, drooling, and vomiting, while the sap can raise a skin rash.
Sap and oxalate crystals can cause skin irritation or contact dermatitis in sensitive people; wear gloves when pruning or removing the vine.
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
Most gardens grow the straight species, but a few named selections trade some vigor for better color or variegated leaves. These are the ones you're most likely to find.
var. engelmannii (Engelmannii)
This form runs less rampant than the species, with smaller leaflets and bronze-red fall color that give it a denser, finer-textured look.
'Monham' (Star Showers)
A variegated pick splashed with white paint-like markings on green leaves that pick up pink tones once the weather cools.
'Troki' (Red Wall)
Bronze in spring and green through summer, this one turns a fire-engine red in fall.
How to propagate
This vine spreads so willingly that making more of it is almost effortless. You can root cuttings, peg down a stem to layer, or start from seed if you have the patience for a cold spell.
Stem cuttingsEasy
Late spring to summer from softwood or semi-hardwood · 4 to 8 weeks to root
Take softwood or semi-hardwood cuttings from late spring into summer and they root with little fuss, striking in 4 to 8 weeks. Stems will also layer on their own wherever they meet moist ground.
LayeringEasy
Spring through summer · One growing season
Layering is the simplest route of all. Anywhere from spring through summer, the trailing stems root at the nodes where they touch the soil, and a pinned-down shoot is usually ready to cut free after one growing season.
SeedModerate
Sow outdoors in fall or cold-stratify before spring sowing · Germination after cold stratification
Seed takes more patience, since it needs a cold spell to wake up. Sow it outdoors in fall, or cold-stratify it before a spring sowing, and germination follows that chilling. In the wild, birds do this work for you, eating the berries and dropping the seed far and wide.
Myths
Virginia creeper is just poison ivy, so any vine with five leaflets is poison ivy.
Count the leaflets and the two part ways. Virginia creeper carries five, the source of the old line 'leaves of five, let it thrive,' while poison ivy carries three, 'leaves of three, let it be.' It holds no urushiol, the oil that makes poison ivy itch, though its oxalate-crystal sap can still raise a mild rash on some skin.