Native Plants

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Tuesday - March 15, 2016

From: Comanche, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Vines
Title: Native vine for fence on youth baseball field
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Our community in Comanche, Texas would like to plant a native vine on the back fence of a youth baseball field. We have plans to plant an area of native grasses behind the fence, between the fence and a hiking path. We need a vine that is safe to use around children and wildlife. Can you help? Thanks!

ANSWER:

The two vines below are the native vines that the USDA Plants Database show growing in Comanche County that would be good candidates for your fence. Neither are known to have toxic properties. They do not appear on any of the poisonous plants databases that I investigated.

Cocculus carolinus (Carolina snailseed) is a strong grower with male and female flowers on different plants. Female plants have red berries if a male plant is nearby to furnish the pollen. The seeds within the berries have an interesting shape and are the reason for the "Cocculus" part of the plant's scientific name and for its common name of "snailseed". Here is more information from Texas A&M Horticulture.

Convolvulus equitans (Bindweed) is described as a non-agressive climber and here is more information from Texas A&M AgriLife Research & Extension Center at Uvalde and from Backyard Nature. This vine tends to stay on the ground twining around smaller plants but wcan climb up fences.

You might consider using a combination of these two vines.

From the Image Gallery

Carolina snailseed
Cocculus carolinus

Texas bindweed
Convolvulus equitans