FNPS Plant Database

Decumaria barbara

cowitch-vine, climbing hydrangea
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

cowitch-vine, climbing hydrangea

Synonym(s):

Hydrangea barbara

Genus species:

Decumaria barbara

Family:

Hydrangeaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

vine

Size:

to 30 ft

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

Phenology:

deciduous

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

It's a vine, but can be used as a groundcover or to scramble over rocky outcroppings.

Considerations:

It will only bloom when it is allowed to climb.

Availability:

Native Nurseries, Seed

Propagation:

Seed or softwood cuttings.

Light:

Part Sun, Shade

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Aquatic -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam

Soil pH:

neutral to slightly acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B,10A,10B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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No county distribution is available for this plant yet.
Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Butterflies

Attracts bees and butterflies

Native Habitats:

Floodplains, moist hammocks.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Citations:

North Carolina State Extension. (Undated). North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. ( https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/ ). North Carolina Agricultural & Technical University, Greensboro, NC.


Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. (2025). Plant Database: Decumaria barbara (Climbing Hydrangea). ( https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=deba4 ). Accessed 2026. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Austin, TX.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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