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Peppervine

Nekemias arborea

Found in swamp forests, marshes, wet thickets, moist to wet maritime forests. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

65
Strong

Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

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Height
20–35 feet
Spread
8–10 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 9 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
Summer
Fruiting season
September to October

Recorded in 51 Alabama counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 4

Swamps

Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp
Regional / representative. Shown: Southern coastal swamps, Florida to Virginia; state not identified, a neighboring state.Loblolly bay in a coastal swamp, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Freshwater marshes

Georgia pond and emergent wetland
Regional / representative. Shown: Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Georgia; representative pond ecosystem, a neighboring state.Georgia pond and emergent wetland, Robert 'Bob' Hynes, 1997. Public domain. Source record.

Forest edges and thickets

Wooded scene looking out over partially open fields
Named place / source context. Shown: Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, Georgia and Tennessee; which part is not recorded, a neighboring state.Wooded scene looking out over partially open fields, Richard Schlecht, undated. Public domain. Source record.

Maritime forests and thickets

Salt-pruned forests and shrub thickets behind coastal dunes.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 152 animals.

All wildlife of Alabama

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

15CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

Genus host records with ranges including AL · Ampelopsis

  • Acoloithus falsariusClemens' False Skeletonizer Moth
  • Alypia octomaculataEight-Spot Forester, 8-Spot Forester
  • Amphion floridensisNessus Sphinx
  • Darapsa myronVirginia Creeper Sphinx
  • Deidamia inscriptumLettered Sphinx
  • Enyo lugubrisMournful Sphinx
  • Eudryas grataBeautiful Wood-Nymph
  • Eulithis gracilineataGreater Grapevine Looper
  • Eumorpha achemonAchemon Sphinx
  • Eumorpha intermediaIntermediate Sphinx
Show all 15
  • Eumorpha labruscaeGaudy Sphinx
  • Eumorpha pandorusPandorus Sphinx, Pandora Sphinx
  • Harrisina americanaGrapeleaf Skeletonizer Moth
  • Monochroa absconditellaStrawberry Crown Miner
  • Sphecodina abbottiiAbbott's Sphinx
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
7BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Ampelopsis

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Ampelopsis

  • Gallinula galeataCommon Gallinule
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Vitaceae
Hardiness
Zones 7a–9b
Flower color
Green or white
Growth rate
Rapid
Growth habit
Several stems
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
September
Fruit ends
October

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “Summer” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), USDA PLANTS differ)
  • Flower color · “Green or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Fruit ends · “October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Growth habit · “Several stems” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Rapid” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 7a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “20–35 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Soil · “Good drainage; Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Spread · “8–10 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as

Ampelopsis arborea

Conservation status

Alabama rankSNR
Global rankG5
AL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources