Fiveleaf Akebia
Akebia quinata (Houtt.) Dcne.

SOURCE: The following information on this species is taken, in part, from the Plant Conservation Alliance, Alien Plant Working Group, Weeds Gone Wild website, Fact Sheets. The Fact Sheet information for this species can be found at http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/factmain.htm. Modifications include additional pictures (from www.invasives.org) and resource information. Specific species management and control information is provided elsewhere. Check the website link provided to check for future updates. The last update for this fact sheet is April, 2004.

NATIVE RANGE: Central China to Korea and Japan

DESCRIPTION: Akebia quinata, also known as chocolate vine, is a twining woody vine in the mostly tropical Lardizabalaceae family. It grows as either a twining vine or vigorous groundcover and has slender, rounded stems that are green when young and brown at maturity. The palmate (like a hand) leaves of akebia alternate along the stem and are divided into five, or sometimes fewer, approximately equal parts called leaflets, whose small stems meet at a central juncture. Leaflets are generally long oval in shape, 1½ to 3 inches long and emerge with a purplish tinge, becoming blue-green at maturity.

Photo: Shep Zedaker, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, www.forestryimages.org.

Flowers are unusual, chocolate-purple colored, and fragrant, about 1 inch across, and appear in late March to early April, when they are often concealed by new foliage. Fruits are purple-violet, flattened sausage-like pods, 2 1/4 to 4 inches in length, that ripen in late September to early October. The inside of the pod has a whitish pulpy core with many tiny black seeds. Fiveleaf akebia is deciduous in cooler climates but may remain evergreen in the warmer regions, such as Louisiana.

ECOLOGICAL THREAT: Fiveleaf akebia grows so quickly that, if left unmanaged, it can kill off existing ground level vegetation, understory shrubs and trees, and even some canopy trees, by overtopping and smothering them. Once established, its dense growth prevents seed germination and seedling establishment of native plants.

Photo: Shep Zedaker, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, www.forestryimages.org.

DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES: Fiveleaf akebia is found in 16 states in the eastern U.S., from Michigan to Connecticut, south to Georgia. Although it is not listed as occurring in South Carolina, this is probably an oversight.

HABITAT IN THE UNITED STATES: Akebia is shade and drought tolerant and can invade many types of habitats. Its growth appears to be restricted only by the height of the object it is entangling.

BACKGROUND: Fiveleaf akebia brought to the United States in 1845 as an ornamental and has since naturalized in the warmer climates.

BIOLOGY & SPREAD: Akebia spreads primarily by vegetative means and is capable of growing twenty to forty feet in a single growing season. Fruits are not always produced and the seeds of akebia are not known to be carried by wind or insects. While birds may play a role in seed dispersal, fiveleaf akebia is vectored primarily through inadvertent activities of humans.

SUGGESTED ALTERNATIVE PLANTS: Some native alternative vines for the eastern U.S. include trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), cross vine (Bignonia capreolata), trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans), or Dutchman's pipe (Aristolochia durior). Contact your local native plant society for other suggestions.

AUTHORS:
Adrienne Reese and Robert E. Lyons, Dept. of Horticulture, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. Jil M. Swearingen, U.S. National Park Service, Washington, DC.

EDITOR:
Jil M. Swearingen, U.S. National Park Service, Washington, DC.

For more information on garlic mustard, please contact:
The Bugwood Network, http://www.invasive.org/.

REFERENCES:
Dirr, Michael. Manual of Woody Landscape Plants. Illinois: Champaign, 1990. DeWolf, Gordon, et al. Taylor's Guide to Ground Covers. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1987. Wyman, Donald. Shrubs and Vines for American Gardens. Toronto: The Macmillan Company, 1969.

Plant Conservation Alliance, Alien Plant Working Group.

Management and Control Information

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