Virginia Creeper Looks Like What?

Tendrils

• In the fall, a Virginia creeper vine loses its leaves. This is the best time to view its tendrils, extensions off the main stem that have tiny branchlets ending in what amounts to suction cups. The branchlets feature the small, adhesive discs that hold the vine fast to surfaces, as it grows upward. The tendrils have between five and eight of these branchlets, notes the University of Connecticut Plant Database. These tendrils allow a Virginia creeper to climb without benefit of support. The vine grows to lengths between 30 and 50 feet in full sun or part shade.

Leaves

• The foliage grows out on the Virginia creeper in an alternate pattern -- one leaf to each node rather than two leaves, each growing opposite the other one. The leaves are palmately compound, meaning that between three to five leaflets grow out of one central stem, arranged so they resemble a hand. The leaflets range in size between 4 and 6 inches. Their borders feature serrations and the new foliage opens up with a bronze color before changing to dark green. Autumn chill results in colorful foliage on this vine, as the leaves change to red and purple.

Flowers

• The flowers of the Virginia creeper emerge in June, but seeing them clearly is difficult. The dense green foliage obscures them from your view, but even if they were more obvious, they lack great ornamental value, according to the Missouri Botanical Garden. The flowers are in clusters and they are greenish-white.

Fruit

• One of the features of the Virginia creeper making it suitable for your bird gardens and naturalized areas is the fruit the flowers yield. The berries are ¼ inch wide and they become ripe during September. The berries are black or a very dark shade of blue. Birds feast upon them; those that remain on the vine become obvious once the leaves fall off it.