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Climbing Hempweed

Mikania scandens

Found in marshes, swamp forests, wet thickets, streambanks, seepages. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

52
Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height
About 1 foot
Light
Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Moist to standing water
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
June to October
Fruiting season
Summer to fall

Not yet recorded · Spread · Life cycle

Recorded in 64 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 5

Swamps

View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina
Named place / source context. Shown: Great Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, as titled by Museum of Fine Arts Boston; nineteenth-century artistic interpretation, a neighboring state.View, Dismal Swamp, North Carolina, Regis Francois Gignoux, 1850. 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.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

Seeps and springs

Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep
Groundwater seep. Shown: Gum Swamp Trail, Weymouth Woods, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep, ncwetlands.org, undated. CC BY 2.0. Source record.

Freshwater marshes

Open, herb-covered wetlands with fresh, non-tidal water.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 173 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

9CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Mikania

  • Calephelis virginiensisNorthern Metalmark
  • Condica confederataThe Confederate
  • Digrammia continuataCurve-Lined Angle
  • Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
  • Herpetogramma bipunctalisSouthern Beet Webworm, Two-Spotted Herpetogramma
  • Leucospilapteryx venustellaSnakeroot Leafminer
  • Platynota stultanaOmnivorous Leafroller
  • Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
  • Adaina bipunctatus
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
28BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Mikania

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
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Asteraceae
Flower color
White
Growth rate
Rapid
Growth habit
Single crown
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Summer
Fruit ends
Fall

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

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Climbing Hempvine; Slimbing Hempweed

Conservation status

Virginia rankSNR
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Sources