Friday, 8:00 AM. 52 degrees, wind E, moderate. The channel is wrinkled. The sky is overcast, there is another .2” of rain in the gauge and the barometer predicts more rain, although it seems to be clearing.
Virginia creeper, or woodbine, Parthenocissus quinquifolia, is in the Vitaceae, the grape family. It is a vine, climbing on trees, shrubs or rocky banks, fences, walls, etc. The flowers, growing in dense clusters called corymbs, are insignificant in appearance, but the fruits are very obvious, looking like small blue-black grapes. The leaves turn brilliant orange to maroon in fall.
Unfortunately, the plant is often mistaken for poison ivy, and I would amend the childhood mantra, “leaves of three let them be,” with “leaves of five, let the live.”
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