Supplejack
Berchemia scandens
Found in swamp forests, bottomlands, streambanks, also upland in moist to even dry forests, woodlands, glades, and prairies over calcareous rock or sediment. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- 20–60 feet
- Spread
- 6–12 feet
- Light
- Dappled sunlight, Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Somewhat dry to 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
- April to May
- Fruiting season
- August to October
Recorded in 51 Florida counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone
Floodplain and bottomland forests
Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.
Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 127 animals.
- Acadian FlycatcherEmpidonax virescens
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- American GoldfinchCarduelis tristis
- American KestrelFalco sparverius
- American RedstartSetophaga ruticilla
- American RobinTurdus migratorius
- Baltimore OrioleIcterus galbula
- Barred OwlStrix varia
- Belted KingfisherMegaceryle alcyon
- Black VultureCoragyps atratus
- Black-and-White WarblerMniotilta varia
- Blue GrosbeakPasserina caerulea
- Blue JayCyanocitta cristata
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Brown CreeperCerthia americana
- Carolina ChickadeePoecile carolinensis
- Carolina WrenThryothorus ludovicianus
- Cedar WaxwingBombycilla cedrorum
- Chimney SwiftChaetura pelagica
- Common GrackleQuiscalus quiscula
- Common MynaAcridotheres tristis
- Common NighthawkChordeiles minor
- Common YellowthroatGeothlypis trichas
Who uses this plant?
1CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL
Genus host records with ranges including FL · Berchemia
- Synanthedon scitulaDogwood Borer, Pecan Borer
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
5BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Berchemia
- Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
- Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
- Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
- Vireo solitariusBlue-headed Vireo
- Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
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
Plant details
- Family
- Rhamnaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 6a–9b
- Soil pH
- Acidic to neutral
- Flower color
- Green or white
- Fruit begins
- August
- Fruit ends
- October
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “April to May” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Green or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Fruit begins · “August” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Hardiness · “Zones 6a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “20–60 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Dappled sunlight (shade through upper canopy all day); 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 (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards differs)
- Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards differs)
- Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “6–12 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Rattan Vine; Supple Jack
Conservation status
| Florida rank | S4S5 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| FL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Atlas of Florida Plants
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- FloraQuest: South Central (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- FloraQuest: Florida (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- FloraQuest: Northern Tier (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications