Cynanchum laeve
| Cynanchum laeve | |
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| Species: | C. laeve
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| Binomial name | |
| Cynanchum laeve | |
| Synonyms | |
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Ampelamus albidus | |
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Cynanchum laeve is a vining perennial herb native to eastern and central U.S. states and Ontario. Common names include sand vine, honeyvine, honeyvine milkweed, bluevine milkweed, climbing milkweed, and smooth swallow-wort.
Like bindweed and some other members of the Convolvulaceae, Cynanchum laeve is a twining vine with heart-shaped leaves common in roadsides, fence rows, fields, and disturbed areas. However, C. laeve is easily recognized as a member of the Milkweed family by its opposite leaf placement, milky sap and distinctive flowers and "milkweed pods." The seeds are wind dispersed and can travel long distances.[2]
Cynanchum laeve is considered a noxious weed in several states,[3] and can be very difficult to eradicate from fields because of its deep, extensive root system.[4] Like many other milkweed species, C. laeve contains toxic cardenolide alkaloids,[5] and is a food plant for the caterpillars of Monarch butterflies.[6]
Synonymous plant names include Ampelamus albidus (Nutt.) Britton, Ampelamus laevis (Michx.) Krings, and Gonolobus laevis Michx.[7]
References
- ^ 1913 illustration from Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. 3 vols. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. Vol. 3: 36
- ^ Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses: Honeyvine Milkweed
- ^ USDA, NRCS. 2011. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=CYLA, 19 June 2011). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.
- ^ Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses: Honeyvine Milkweed
- ^ Burrows, G. E.; Tyrl, R. J., 2001. "Toxic plants of North America." Iowa State Univ Press, Ames. As referenced in the FDA Poisonous Plant Database
- ^ Kansas Native Plants: Butterfly Gardening
- ^ "Cynanchum laeve (Michx.) Pers., Honeyvine, Synonyms". Plants Database. US Department of Agriculture, Natural Resource Conservation Service. Retrieved 1 July 2015.