I painted Bittersweet on Birch to showcase the beauty of these plants and the marsh. There are a few of these American Bittersweet, Celastrus scandens, near here. They are native plants, not to be confused with its Asian cousin, Celastrus orbiculatus. This blog does a good job comparing and contrasting the two. As seen in my painting, the American Bittersweet’s berries are on the terminal ends of the stems. The invasive bittersweet’s berries grow along the stem from the leaf axils, and its leaves are rounded at the tip.

I’ve found more than one place that has bittersweet on birch. It makes me wonder if they have a special relationship. The bright orange berries do contrast nicely with the white paper birch.

Here we are in an unseasonably hot early summer and I’m thinking of autumn’s beauty. And cooler temperatures! Enjoy the summer.