About J. Wayne Fears

Hunters often curse the perennial thorny vine most call greenbrier. It can be difficult to walk through and its briers can scratch the skin. However, many wildlife biologists consider greenbrier to be one of the most important groups of native deer food. And hunters who manage thickets of greenbrier growing on their hunting lands find it attracts deer, since deer relish the plant as a favorite browse species.

Greenbrier (Smilax spp.) is a high-protein (from 30% in spring to 10% in late fall), perennial evergreen that deer prefer over many other browse plants. Many wildlife biologists and hunting land managers consider greenbrier to be one of the most important groups of naturally occurring food. There are over two dozen greenbrier species in the United States and southern Canada. The perennial thorny and woody vine is often called Smilax, after its scientific name. As a group, it occurs throughout the eastern half of the U.S. and into southeastern Canada. Some of the more important species of greenbrier include common, laurel, lanceleaf, cat, and saw.

Although there are several species, most look much the same. Unless the vines are heavily browsed, they retain their leaves throughout the year. This climbing plant can grow vines 30 to 40 feet long.

The leaves generally are heart-shaped or round and shiny with jointed tips. Most species produce a pale-green trumpet-shaped flower in spring. The seeds are blue to black colored fruitlike berries that can be single or clustered. The young stems and leaves of the vine are favored food of deer and rabbits, and the fruit is eaten by a variety of birds as well as deer, bear, and wild turkey.

Deer biologists have found that deer prefer greenbrier over many other browse plants.

The new growth leaves, stems, and canes are a highly preferred and extremely important deer browse. Research in east Texas indicates that during the winter, greenbrier can contain 11% crude protein (necessary for body growth, development, and maintenance) – more than twice the amount found in other native winter browse.

According to white-tailed deer biologist Kent Kammermeyer, greenbrier is one of the highest quality native plants in the white-tailed deer diet. He states in his excellent book Deer & Turkey Management Beyond Food Plots that greenbrier is an indicator plant for deer abundance throughout the year, but especially in late winter. Overpopulated deer herds will easily cause highly visible browse lines where no greenbrier leaves remain at the 5-foot level.

Plant Habitat

Greenbrier is generally thought of as a plant that grows in moist lowlands and creek bottoms, but I have found it in healthy stands on upland ridges as well. It grows in a variety of soil types and terrain, including dense and cutover forests, swamps, stream bottoms, abandoned fields, and along fencerows. Throughout the east, it is associated primarily with lowlands. In its western range, greenbrier is generally associated with slopes and bottoms of hills.

Stems or canes grow from underground tubers or rhizomes, depending upon the species. They may persist for years before putting out stems. Some species of greenbrier have canes or individual stems that may grow to 40 feet or more in length, climbing by tendrils.

Rhizomes produce new canes annually, which grow quickly. If the tips are eaten, new branches form at one of several remaining nodes. Browsing actually helps make new growth available. About 50% to 60% of the annual growth of greenbriers may be eaten without root mortality.

Propagation

	Greenbrier range map.

Greenbrier can be propagated by digging up and replanting existing rootstock. However, canes generally will not appear until the second year after planting.

Unlike other species of greenbrier, lanceleaf will not spread from the planting point except by seed because it has a tuber rather than rhizomes.

When greenbrier canes climb into trees beyond the reach of deer, controlled burning can stimulate the rhizomes and tubers to produce new growth. Mowing greenbriers where they are accessible during mid-June causes the rhizomes to produce new canes during the otherwise stressed nutritional months of late summer.

Fertilizing greenbrier according to a soil test can increase the quality and the quantity of the stems and leaves available to deer.

As I prepared this article, I could not find a commercial source for obtaining greenbrier seed or rhizomes. However, I know of many land managers who have dug up greenbrier rootstock from one location and replanted it in a similar location with good results. As the new growth begins to appear, it will be necessary to protect it from over-browsing by deer and rabbits until it is well established.

I know of several hunters who consider their managed patches of greenbrier as food plots and report taking good bucks in them each fall. Finding greenbrier patches can be an excellent way to have secret sweet spots when hunting on public lands.

Hunting greenbrier thickets can be productive, especially late in the season when food is in short supply in the woods. Well-fertilized greenbrier thickets make good food plots and should be included in a wildlife management plan.

Editor’s note: Before introducing any new plant to your farm or land, check with your county agent to make sure it is not considered to be an aggressive or undesirable plant for your area.