Vines (sometimes called Magic Vines or Beanstalks) are used as ladders in the Mario series. They first appeared in Super Mario Bros., and remain dormant inside ? Blocks. When the player hit the blocks containing the vines, a vine would grow allowing the player to use it as a ladder. Most vines have Piranha Plants as their heads while they are growing. The head disappears when the vine is fully grown.
In Super Mario Bros. 2, the stalks are already grown in the level and do not need to be activated.
Super Mario Bros. 3
In Super Mario Bros. 3 they match the color scheme of the world they are located in; brown for World 2, green for Worlds 3 and 4, blue for World 5, and white for World 6. One notable feature about the All-Stars and Advance versions is that the top of Vines resemble Piranha Plant heads, a trait that continued in the rest of the series.
Super Mario World
In Super Mario World, Vines return to being green, and some grow toward breakable blocks. If Mario removes the blocks the stalk can continue rising, making shortcuts available. If the player is carrying an item such as a P-Switch, the stalk cannot be climbed normally. The player can kick the item up, start to climb the Vine, and then hold the Y button again to catch the item coming down while climbing. Like other Piranha Plants, the standard Piranha Plant head will change into a Jumping Pumpkin Plant in Super Mario World, after the player completes Funky.
New Super Mario Bros.
Vines later appear in New Super Mario Bros.. In this game, they can grow downwards if the character hit the block containing the vine from above with a ground pound. Vines can also grow upwards if hit normally. Here, unlike Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, the top of the Vine still looks like a Piranha Plant, but the sprite isn't identical to the regular Piranha Plant's sprite. Also, all tips of the Vines are red, to look more like a Piranha Plant. Their stems also have a twisted appearance in the game.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Vines return in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, serving the same function as in the other games, but having a slightly different appearance. The tips of the Vine return to their original green appearance. They also revert to their non-twisted appearance. Also, in World 7, there's a Vine on the World Map that leads the character to a back door from the World 7-Castle that takes the player right to Ludwig von Koopa. This can be accessed any time after finishing 7-6.
New Super Mario Bros. U
Vines return yet again and act like the New Super Mario Bros. Wii variant. The New Super Mario Bros. U level Skyward Stalk and the New Super Luigi U level Beanstalk Jungle, both from Sparkling Waters, contains a giant Beanstalk (which acts similarly to a Vine) to reach the end of the stage.
Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!
Small Vines could also be seen in the background of a few episodes of The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3. However, they were never integral to the plot of any episode.
Super Mario World television series
In the Super Mario World episode "Party Line", countless vines were used as telephone lines for the Cave People of Dome City. After the concept of telephones proved to be unnecessary for the Cave People, Yoshi was given the job of eating all the vines.
A vine is also an item in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and Yoshi's Island DS, having a smaller head and smaller eyes in the latter game. Occasionally, when popping a ? Mark Cloud, Yoshi may uncover one of the seeds of these large, cheery plants. It then grows upwards at a very fast rate and produces ledge-like leaves while doing so. Unlike in other games, Yoshi must hop on its leaves instead of climbing it like a ladder.
Vines reappear in Mario Party 9 looking exactly as they were in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. In the Toad Road gameboard, a Vine can be accessed landing on one of the Lucky Spaces. It takes the captain to a cloud to collect Mini Stars. Vines also appear in the minigame, Growing Up where they get out of Brick Blocks as the players hit them.
Names in other languages
Language
Name
Meaning
Japanese
つる / ツル Tsuru ひまわり[1] Himawari マメの木 Mame no ki スイングロープ[2] Suingu Rōpu
* In version 1.20 or later • ** In version 1.30 or later • *** In version 1.40 or later • † Only in the Wii U version. • ‡ Only in the Nintendo 3DS version