Appearance
Euonymus alatus is a deciduous shrub, up to 20 ft. (6.1 m) in height, which invades forests throughout the eastern United States. Two to four corky ridges often form along the length of young stems, though they may not appear in shaded areas or closed canopies.

Foliage
The opposite, dark green leaves are < 2 in. (5 cm) long, smooth, rounded and taper at the tips. The leaves turn a bright crimson to purplish color in the fall.

Flowers
The flowers are inconspicuous, are greenish-yellow and have four petals. Flowers develop from late April to June and lay flat against the leaves.

Fruit
The fruit which appears from September to October are reddish capsules that split to reveal orange fleshy seeds.

Ecological Threat
Euonymus alatus can invade not only a variety of disturbed habitats including forest edges, old fields, and roadsides but also in undisturbed forests. Birds and other wildlife eat and disperse the fruit. Once established, it can form dense thickets, displacing native vegetation. It is native to northeastern Asia and was first introduced into North America in the 1860s for ornamental purposes. This plant is still sold and planted as an ornamental.

Resources

• A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests - USDA Forest Service
• Weed of the Week - USDA Forest Service
• Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas - National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Selected Images

Maps

Invasive Listing Sources

• City of Ann Arbor Michigan Parks and Recreation
• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, 1994.
• Connecticut Invasive Plant List
• Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
• Delaware Invasive Species Council
• Delaware Invasive Species Council Invasive Species List
• Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council - Category 4
• Hoffman, R. & K. Kearns, Eds. 1997. Wisconsin manual of control recommendations for ecologically invasive plants. Wisconsin Dept. Natural Resources, Bureau of Endangered Resources. Madison, Wisconsin. 102pp.
• Indiana Invasive Species Council - Invasive Plant List
• Invasive Plant Species of West Virginia
• Jil M. Swearingen, Survey of invasive plants occurring on National Park Service lands, 2000-2007
• Jil Swearingen, personal communication, 2009-2017
• John Randall, The Nature Conservancy, Survey of TNC Preserves, 1995.
• Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council - Severe Threat
• Maine Invasive Plants
• Maryland Code and Regulations of Invasive Plants
• Maryland Cooperative Extension Service.  2003. Invasive Plant Control in Maryland. Home and Garden Information Center, Home and Garden Mimeo HG88. 4 pp.
• Maryland Department of Natural Resources Policy: Restriction on Planting Exotic Invasive Plants
• Maryland Invasive Species Council - Invasive Species of Concern in Maryland
• Massachusetts Invasive Plants Advisory Group List
• Massachusetts Noxious Weeds
• Massachusetts Prohibited Plant List
• Minnesota Noxious Weeds
• Missouri SRISP Species List
• National Park Service, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Plant Management Team Invasive Plant List
• New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee. 2005. Guide to Invasive Upland Plant Species in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Department of Agriculture,  Markets and Food Plant Industry Division and New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee.
• New Hampshire Prohibited Invasive Species
• New Jersey Invasive Species Management Act
• New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team 2017 Invasive Species List
• New York Regulated and Prohibited Invasive Species - Regulated
• Non-Native Invasive Plants of Arlington County, Virginia
• Non-Native Invasive Plants of the City of Alexandria, Virginia
• Nonnative Invasive Species in Southern Forest and Grassland Ecosystems
• Ohio Invasive Species Council
• Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program Tracked Species List
• Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Invasive Plants
• Pennsylvania Noxious Weeds
• Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas
• Reichard, Sarah. 1994.  Assessing the potential of invasiveness in woody plants introduced in North America. University of Washington Ph.D. dissertation.
• Rhode Island Natural History Survey
• South Carolina Invasive Pest Council
• Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council
• Virginia Invasive Plant Species List
• Virginia Master Naturalists Priority Species List
• WeedUS - Database of Plants Invading Natural Areas in the United States
• West Virginia Invasive Species Strategic Plan and Volunteer Guidelines 2014
• West Virginia Native Plant Society, Flora West Virginia Project, and West Virginia Curatorial Database System, September 3, 1999
• Wisconsin Noxious Weeds
• Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40

References