Types of Harmful Vines

Damages Buildings

• Certain vines cause costly damage to buildings by marring painted surfaces, as well as pulling down shutters, gutters and wiring. These vines quickly grow to about 50 feet long and form difficult-to-remove sucker disks, enabiling them to easily scale any surface. Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia var. engelmannii) is native to eastern and central North America and its dull green, compound-palmate foliage typically forms five saw-toothed leaflets and grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 through 9. Boston ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata) has shiny, dark green, triple-lobed leaves and grows in USDA zones 4 through 8. Both vines are invasive species in some areas.

Suffocates Surrounding Plants

• Japanese honeysuckle “Halliana” (Lonicera japonica “Halliana”) and chocolate vine (Akebia quinata) can suffocate surrounding plants, including shrubs and small trees. Despite its aromatic blossoms and sweet nectar, “Halliana” rapidly grows about 30 feet long and is listed as an exotic invasive species throughout the Midwest and in other areas. This vine grows in USDA zones 4 through 9. Chocolate vine swiftly grows about 40 feet long in USDA zones 4 through 8 and is considered invasive in some regions. You can identify this vine by its 4-inch-long, violet pods featuring black seeds and whitish pulp inside.

Irritates Skin

• Touching poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) or trailing lantana (Lantana montevidensis) can cause skin irritation. Urushiol is the oil in poison ivy that causes skin irritation. You can contract allergic dermatitis by direct or indirect contact – for example, your dog brushes against it and then you pet her. Sometimes difficult to identify because of its varying leaf characteristics, you can look for three leaflets. This ubiquitous vine grows about 3 feet long in USDA zones 4 through 10. Contact with trailing lantana causes skin irritation. It aggressively grows in frost-free zones and is listed as invasive in some places. Trailing lantana spreads 5 feet wide or more as a dense ground cover in USDA zones 8 through 10 and its hairy, oval, coarsely toothed, dark green leaves release an unpleasant smell when bruised.

Toxic

• Certain vines are toxic if eaten. Although its underground tubers are edible, all above-ground parts of jicama (Pachyrhizus erosus) are toxic because they contain the naturally occurring insecticide rotenone. The seeds can cause hemorrhaging in the brain, lungs, liver and adrenal glands, according to a 2005 article in the Journal of the Medical Association of Thailand. Jicama grows about 30 feet long in USDA zones 10 through 12. Invasive in some regions, all parts of golden trumpet (Allamanda cathartica) contain the toxin lactone that causes vomiting. Its sap also causes blisters and an itchy rash. This evergreen grows about 20 feet long in USDA zones 10 through 11 and is identifiable by its yellow, trumpet-shaped blossoms.