Cissus verticillata
(possum grape vine)

Preferred Common Name

• possum grape vine

Other Scientific Names

• Cissus albonitens Linden & André
• Cissus andraeana Planch.
• Cissus argentea Linden
• Cissus blumeana Steud.
• Cissus canescens Lam.
• Cissus compressicaulis Ruiz & Pav.
• Cissus cordifolia L.
• Cissus digitinervis Ram.Goyena
• Cissus elliptica Schltdl. & Cham.
• Cissus endresii H.J.Veitch
• Cissus glauca Thwaites
• Cissus gonavensis Urb. & Ekman
• Cissus haitiensis Urb. & Ekman
• Cissus lamarckiana Schult. & Schult.f.
• Cissus latifolia Descourt.
• Cissus lindenii André
• Cissus nitida Vell.
• Cissus obscura DC.
• Cissus obtusata Benth.
• Cissus officinalis Klotzsch
• Cissus ovata Lam.
• Cissus oxyodon Planch.
• Cissus plumeri Planch.
• Cissus puncticulosa Rich.
• Cissus reticulata Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.
• Cissus sicyoides L.
• Cissus smilacina Kunth
• Cissus tamoides Cambess.
• Cissus tucumana Suess.
• Cissus umbrosa Kunth
• Cissus venatorum Descourt.
• Irsiola sicyoides (L.) Raf.
• Phoradendron verticillatum (L.) Druce
• Spondylantha aphylla C. Presl
• Viscum verticillatum L.
• Vitis albonitens (Linden & André) G. Nicholson
• Vitis elliptica (Schltdl. & Cham.) Hemsl.
• Vitis lindenii (André) G. Nicholson
• Vitis sicyoides (L.) Miq.

International Common Names

• English: curtain ivy; millionaire vine; princess vine; season vine; tropical grape vine
• Spanish: bejuco de agua; bejuco loco; bejuco picamano; come mano; pica pica; picamano; sanalo todo; uvita

Local Common Names

• Argentina: cortina del cielo
• Costa Rica: bejuco yazú
• Dominican Republic: vinagrillo; bejuco caro; bejuco de parra; caro
• Haiti: feuilles cotaire; herbe à ulcéres; liane minguet; liane molle
• Lesser Antilles: godmort; liane-à-chasseurs; lianeà-eau; liane-brulante; liane-corde; liane-douce; liane-molle; pudding bush; snake vine
• Mexico: tripa de vaca; tripa de zopilote
• Peru: uvilla de culebra

• Domain: Eukaryota
•     Kingdom: Plantae
•         Phylum: Spermatophyta
•             Subphylum: Angiospermae
•                 Class: Dicotyledonae
•                     Order: Rhamnales
•                         Family: Vitaceae
•                             Genus: Cissus
•                                 Species: Cissus verticillata

The family Vitaceae comprises 17 genera and about 955 species of lianas, vines, and rarely shrubs distributed in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions of the world. Within the Vitaceae, the genus Cissus is the most diverse with about 350 species (Lombardi, 2017; Stevens, 2017). Cissus verticillata is a highly variable species and classifications recognizing up to 4 subspecies based on differences among size and form of the leaves and the inflorescences have been proposed (Lombardi, 2000; Lombardi, 2015). Some of the information cited here is for the species C. sicyoides; although some authors still maintain C. sicyoides as a distinct species, the majority of more recent works treat it as a synonym of C. verticillata (Useful Tropical Plants, 2020).

The following is based on the description by Acevedo-Rodríguez (2005): Large vine, that climbs by means of tendrils and attains more than 10 m in length. Stems fleshy, with abundant watery latex, cylindrical when young, flattened when mature, attaining 5 cm in diameter, the nodes swollen. Leaves alternate, coriaceous, ovate, 5-12 × 3.8-6.5 cm, the apex acute or rounded, the base cordiform, the margins revolute, denticulate; upper surface green, shiny; lower surface green, dull, with prominent venation; petioles 2-5 cm long, sulcate; stipules 2.5-3.5 mm long, auriculate; tendrils opposite the leaves, simple or bifurcate, up to 25 cm long, twisting in the form of a spiral. Inflorescences of compound cymes that are borne opposite the leaves; pedicels ca. 3 mm long, yellowish green or reddish. Calyx yellowish green or reddish, 0.7-1 mm long; petals 4, yellowish or pink, oblong-lanceolate, 2-2.5 mm long, deciduous; disc annular, yellow, 0.5-0.8 mm high. Fruits globose, fleshy, 0.7-1 cm in diameter, shiny, dark violet or black, with one or two seeds inside.

The roots of C. verticillata have been imported into Europe since the 16th century for medicinal use. Ethno-pharmacological usage of this species appears in texts dating back to 1582 and 1829 (Drobnik and de Oliveira, 2015). In Hawaii, it was introduced in the 1970s (PIER, 2020; USDA-NRCS, 2020).

Soil texture

• heavy
• light
• medium

Cissus verticillata spreads by seeds and vegetatively via rooting from stem fragments and broken offshoots. The fleshy fruits are dispersed mostly by birds (French et al., 2003; Smith, 2010).

Cissus verticillata is regarded as a weed in areas within and outside its native distribution range of the Americas (Acuña, 1974; Futch and Hall, 2003; Brenes-Prendas and Agüero-Alvarado, 2007; Smith, 2010; Randall, 2017; PIER, 2020). In the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas, C. verticillata was reported affecting agricultural crops such as citrus (grapefruits and oranges) by completely covering them (French et al., 2003).

Cissus verticillata is an invasive fast-growing vine that climbs and completely covers shrubs and trees, forming a thick canopy and blocking sunlight to the understorey native plants. This species has the potential to smother native vegetation by killing host trees, outcompeting understorey plants and negatively affecting the germination and establishment of native seedlings (French et al., 2003; Smith, 2010). C. verticillata is able to cover small trees with its foliage. Species affected in this way include Quercus virginiana (live oak), Salix nigra (black willow), Salix exigua (sandbar willow), Melia azedarach (Chinaberry), Sapium sebiferum (Chinese tallow) and Carica papaya (papaya) (French et al., 2003).

• Invasive in its native range
• Proved invasive outside its native range
• Has a broad native range
• Abundant in its native range
• Highly adaptable to different environments
• Is a habitat generalist
• Tolerates, or benefits from, cultivation, browsing pressure, mutilation, fire etc
• Pioneering in disturbed areas
• Long lived
• Fast growing
• Reproduces asexually

• Host damage
• Negatively impacts agriculture
• Reduced native biodiversity
• Threat to/ loss of native species

• Competition - monopolizing resources
• Competition - shading
• Competition - smothering
• Competition - strangling
• Rapid growth
• Rooting

• Highly likely to be transported internationally deliberately
• Difficult to identify/detect in the field

Cissus verticillata is cultivated as an ornamental and medicinal plant. The stems and roots are used as cordage and to make baskets. The leaves are macerated in water and used as soap. Leaf decoctions are taken widely as a popular remedy for diabetes in Brazil, where its common name is “vegetal insulin”. Leaves, stems, sap and roots are used in traditional medicines and cultural rituals by indigenous people in the Americas (Lombardi, 2000; Pepato et al., 2003). In the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Tobago, C. verticillata is used as an anti-diabetic agent and as a treatment for urinary problems (Lans, 2006).