THOMASVILLE —
What vine is this climbing trees, taking over shrubs and tripping folks in their flower beds? Oh, and by the way, it smells really bad. The last description should give it away. We are looking at "skunk vine."
Miss Clare Lear asked me to look at this vine in her backyard a few weeks ago. Little did I know I was in for a skunk vine education.
Miss Clare spent time researching this stinky vine and proceeded to tell me all about it. It turns out, skunk vine (Paederia foetida) is a woody vine that can reach 30 feet in length, climbing high into tree canopies. It does not have thorns but emits a stinky odor when its leaves are crushed.
Interestingly, skunk vine leaves vary in size and shape. Miss Clare showed me vines with rounded leaf bases and vines with heart-shaped leaf bases.
For an ID confirmation, I sent the skunk vine to UGA Ornamental Weed Scientist, Dr. Mark Czarnota. He called and said, "Tell Miss Clare excellent job on the identification."
See Tuesday's edition for more details.
Local News
Related Photos
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Clare Lear removes skunk vine from her yard. Submitted photo
September 24, 2012
Miss Clare tackles skunk vine
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