When dealing with an invasive vine like bittersweet, show no mercy. At this point, there is more of this plant than anyone wants, so if you want to harvest its fruit for decoration, have at it. The trick and key is to pick your stems while the berries are golden but fully intact and not yet open – once cut, they will open up fully indoors. If you pick them after they’ve opened, and already sowing their bright orange guts, it’s too late, and they will shed all their golden shells everywhere, making an annoying mess.
When you’re saddled with an annoying vine that is sucking the life out of more delicate native plants, be ruthless, but try to harness the beauty if you can. (Get it from the roots after you get it from the top.)
