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Celastrus
Celastrus, commonly known as staff vine, staff tree or bittersweet, is the type genus of the family Celastraceae; it contains over 40 species of shrubs and vines, which have a wide distribution in East Asia, Australasia, Africa, and the Americas.
Description
The leaves are alternate and simple, ovoid, and typically 5 - 20 cm long. The flowers are small, white, pink or greenish, and borne in long panicles; the fruit is a three-valved berry. In North America, they are known as bittersweet, presumably a result of confusion with the unrelated bittersweet (Solanum dulcamara) by early colonists. C. orbiculatus is a serious invasive weed in much of eastern North America.
Species
Plants of the World Online includes:
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