India, Nov. 1 -- Imagine a vine with berries in shades of lilac, green, and bright blue. It looks like something straight out of a storybook. That's roughly why it was planted. According to a 2009 U.S. Forest Service review by Melissa Waggy, porcelain berry was brought into the northeastern U.S. in 1870 as a bedding and landscape plant. Then it escaped from cultivation and began to grow wild. Today, the same vine is a serious problem along many woodland edges in parts of the eastern U.S.

The porcelain berry is native to Asia. It is found in parts of China, Korea, Japan, and the Russian Far East. It's a woody climber that climbs by tendrils. Back in the 1800s, it was planted for its looks. It can cover walls, fences, and arbors and carrie...