This vine is called “Wait-a-while” because it forms dense tangly thickets and has spiky barbs, so you have to wait a while if you trying to follow someone through it. It is also called Hounds-tongue because the shape and veins on the leaf are similar to the shape and indentations on a dog’s tongue.

It is different to the tropical Wait-a-while or Lawyer Vine, Calamus Muelleri, which has severe fish-hook like barbs and palm-tree like foliage. Smilax should not be called Lawyer Vine or Lawyer cane vine, because it has fairly thin and irregular stems, unlike Calamus Muelleri which has stems upto 20m long and a few centimetres across, than can be cut and dried to produce canes.

An extract is made from the root of other Smilax species to make Sarsparilla drink, root beer, and cures for gout and pre-menstrual syndrome. Aboriginal uses for Smilax australis are believed to include making medicinal tea from the leaves, and eating the fruits.

Click on either of the photos to download a higher resolution image (T.Hastings).