Vines , climbing to tops of trees; rhizomes slender, branched. Leaves: petioles to 28 cm. Leaf blade 10-25 × 10-29 cm, membranous; venation 5 or 7. Inflorescences to 32 cm; rachis puberulent, glandular. Flowers: sepals 1.6-4.6 × 0.6-2 mm, glabrous. Staminate flowers: stamens to 3 mm. Pistillate flowers: ovary to 2 mm. Drupes green at maturity, darkening to deeper green or black upon drying, 15-25 × 10-20 mm. Flowering spring-summer. Primarily along rivers or smaller streams in deciduous forests; 0-350 m; Ala., Ark., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Kans., Ky., La., Miss., Mo., Okla., S.C., Tenn. Calycocarpum lyonii has been reported as occurring in Texas, but no Texas specimens have been seen.
Climbing to the tree-tops; lvs 1-2 dm long, somewhat wider, 3-7-lobed, broadly cordate at base, the lobes acuminate; panicles slender, 1-2 dm; fls numerous, 5 mm wide; fr black, 15-25 mm. Moist woods and swamps; s. Ind. to s. Mo., s. to Fla., La., and Okla. May, June.
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.