where to buy smilax / greenbriar

[Royce]

We're looking for smilax which have read here is also called greenbriar. Where can we purchase bulbs?

Royce

[FarmerDill]

Those who have have it would love to give it all to you but believe me you don't want it. It is good wildlife habitat and that is about all the good I can say about greenbriar (Smilax).

[Christopher Green]

Are you _quite_sure_ you want it? Roundleaf greenbrier or catbrier, S. rotundifolia, is so invasive that many places have eradication programs. It's not something people want taking over their garden.

See Uva et al, Weeds of the Northeast (Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY).

[gregpresley]

[Edward Reid]

On Fri, 22 Oct 2004 9:20:06 -0400, Royce wrote

Smilax makes tubers, not bulbs. You can come to my place and dig all you want. Happy to get rid of them.

The species I have are native here in Florida. (ISTR there are about

300 species worldwide.) So it's not something I rail against, just live with. It gets in the way but knows its place too.

It can be pretty. When I was growing up, we used to cut the leaves and berries for Christmas decorations. The rest of the year we cut it down and dug it up. Don't have even a prayer of getting rid of it unless you dig the tubers out.

The thorns can be nasty, but at least are not recurved like blackberry thorns. Some species have large heavy serious thorns, but few enough that you can find places to grasp the vine. Others are covered with a mat of very small thorns, almost a fuzz. In general, if I have to push my way through thorns, I'd much rather it be smilax than blackberry.

The new shoots are ... fascinating. Up to 1/2" in diameter, several feet tall, and soft for the first month or too. Almost like a sick asparagus. My wife and I once cut a bunch for a friend who was in advertising and delivered them to his office, where he displayed them to clients for several days.

Edward