By mutual agreement, Steve Schwartzman and I are having a Virginia Creeper-off. Here is Steve’s post and here is my entry.
Virginia Creeper(Parthenocissus quinquefolia)
These were draped down the rocks along the Ware Enfield Road that loops through Quabbin Park back in October of 2007.
The compression isn’t being kind to the grain of the rock.
Stephen Gingold Nature Photography Blog 
I like the idea of this creep-off. Both are winners.
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I prefer to think of it as a Creepathon, Jim. No competition. 🙂
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Beautiful, Steve. Virginia Creeper draping down some rock~ what could be lovelier? My Virginia Creeper has gotten ahold of the maple, which is good, but it gets moldy and never really turns red. Therefore, I shall enjoy your’s.
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I don’t know enough about them and their diseases to have an opinion on your Virginia Creepers problem, but it is too bad. Maybe as it matures it will beat back the fungus. I wonder if it is a mildew or rust like grapes get.
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Yes, I think it is a mildew like that. The same had occurred to me, that the problem might go away when the vine is more mature.
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I’d say that’s a rock-solid picture, Steve. By coincidence, just yesterday about 150 miles west of Austin I saw several instances of a Virginia creeper turning red on a boulder. Seems this species boldly marries itself to rock, so that ability is not at all on the rocks
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All the Virginia Creepers I have seen are very tenacious and have a good grip on any host. I haven’t thought, until now, about comparing the brilliance of the red from one host to another to see if the minerals in rocks make a difference. Have you, Steve?
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I certainly haven’t. I’ve never even thought about it, and now that you’ve raised the subject I’d have to say I’ve tacitly assumed that because these vines are drawing nutrients up through their roots, the physical surfaces they cling to, whether geological or botanical, wouldn’t have any effect on the leaves. That’s only an uninformed assumption, of course, and it would probably take a detailed study by someone who knows a lot more about plants and rocks than I ever will.
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That was always my assumption also, Steve. It was just a casual thought in our conversation here. But there might be a possible gain in nutrients from the rock…or not. I’ll have to do a search and see if there is any information about that elsewhere. Maybe it’s just a pigment of my imagination.
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Pingback: A closer view of Virginia creeper turning colors | Portraits of Wildflowers
Its a tie. Next!
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I think this was a one shot deal, Andrew. We’ll see if another comparison pops up.
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I love Virginia creeper! Great (native) vine, as far as I’m concerned. The contrast between the fall color and the rock it’s draping over is particularly nice in your photo.
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Thanks, Cynthia.
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Reminds me of the red on the Burning Bush this time of the season. Snow tonight. Too cold for this time of the year. Jeepers creepers! Good shot as always.
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Yeah, we are getting the whole gamut tonight through tomorrow. Snow, sleet, freezing rain and then finally a drenching after it warms in the morning.
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I like your vine against the rock. It reminds me of a stand I found once on an old cypress barn. It really was lovely against the gray wood, and fairly glowed when the sun hit it. As for color differences related to rocks, my uninformed opinion is probably not: at least as far as the host rock is concerned. But the soil? That’s a different matter. Acidity and alkalinity can affect color in many plants, like hydrangea, and it makes sense to me that, for example, in limestone soil, there could be an effect — or not. It might simply be that sunlight, water, temperatures and such make the difference.
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I think you are probably correct as with Steve as well, Linda. But since the roots grip their host, that made me wonder if the host could have any effect. Probably not, but worth a Google which so far hasn’t turned up anything other than confirming that soil can make a difference.
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