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white bryony, wild hop

Cretan bryony, red bryony, wild hop

Leaves

petiole 2–4.5 cm;

blade orbiculate to ovate or 3–5-angular, palmately 5-lobed, 3–5 × 3–6 cm, lobes deltate to triangular, central lobe largest, base cordate, margins remotely dentate, surfaces hispidulous.

Flowers

calyx campanulate;

sepals recurving, whitish, green-veined, lanceolate, 3.5–5 mm;

petals yellowish to greenish white, oblong-ovate, 3–7 mm;

stigmas glabrous.

calyx campanulate;

sepals green, deltate, 0.5–1 mm;

petals white to cream or yellowish green, ovate-lanceolate, 3–5 mm;

stigmas hairy.

Fruits

4–6(–10), black, 0.6–1 cm, peduncles 2–3[–14] cm.

1 or 3–4(–5), red to orange, 0.6–0.8 cm, peduncles (0–)1–5 cm.

Seeds

2–6(–8), 4–5 × 2 mm.

3–6, 3 × 2 mm.

Vines

monoecious, high-climbing or forming dense mats over vegetation, to 7 m. Leaves: petiole 1.5–3.5 cm;

blade hastate to 5-angular, palmately 3–5-lobed, 3–8(–15) × 2–6(–8) cm, lobes ovate to deltate or triangular, central lobe largest, base deeply cordate, margins coarsely dentate to remotely dentate or serrate, surfaces hispidulous to scabrous or pustulate, not white-sericeous abaxially.

dioecious, high-climbing.

2n

= 20.

= 20.

Bryonia alba

Bryonia dioica

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug. Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Sagebrush, riparian zones, thickets, stream terraces, irrigation ditches, seeps, moist slopes, draws, lawns, roadsides, fencerows, picnic areas, disturbed sites Disturbed places
Elevation 100–1800 m (300–5900 ft) 0–100 m (0–300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; MT; NJ; UT; WA; Europe; Asia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in n, e Europe (Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Lithuania, Poland), Pacific Islands (Hawaii)]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; Europe; w Asia; n Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also elsewhere in Europe (Czech Republic, England), Pacific Islands (New Zealand)]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Bryonia alba has been naturalized in the United States since the 1880s and may have been introduced through commercial seed trade. A tincture from the roots has been widely used as an effective diuretic. The seeds are dispersed by birds.

As noted by C. Jeffrey (1969), Bryonia alba is monoecious in northern Europe, as it seems consistently to be in the flora area; it is commonly dioecious in the southeastern part of its native range (Macedonia to Turkey and southwestern Russia).

Measurements from relatively few collections suggest that peduncles of Bryonia alba are longer in Europe (4–14 cm) than in North America (2–3 cm).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Naturalized plants of Bryonia dioica were first collected in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco in 1919 and 1920 and have been recollected as recently as 1965. C. Jeffrey (1969) noted that the glandular inflorescences of B. dioica distinguish it from B. cretica.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 6, p. 12. FNA vol. 6, p. 13.
Parent taxa Cucurbitaceae > Bryonia Cucurbitaceae > Bryonia
Sibling taxa
B. dioica
B. alba
Synonyms B. cretica subsp. dioica
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 1012. (1753) Jacquin: Fl. Austriac. 2: 59, plate 199. (1774)
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