Scientific Name:
Akebia quinata
Pronunciation:
uh-KEE-bee-uh kwi-NAY-tuh
Common Name:
chocolate vine
Family Name:
Lardizabalaceae
Plant Type:
Broadleaf evergreen, Vine or climber
Key ID Features:
Leaves alternate, palmately compound, leaflets 5, most elliptic-obovate, 4-9cm x 2-5cm wide, apex notched, emerge purple-tinged, mature to bluish-green, petiolules 6-23mm long; flowers 2-3cm wide, most purple-brown (yellow-white cvs.), spicy fragrant; aggreagte of berry-like follicles (hand pollination required), blue-purple.
Habit:
Arching, Twiggy
Form:
Climbing
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
7 - 10m
Mature Spread:
3 - 4m
Growth Rate:
Fast
Origin:
S.E. Asia / Japan / China
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Arbors or trellis, Attract birds
Additional Info:
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Compound
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible, Palmate venation
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Compound Leaf:
Odd-pinnate, Leaflets stalked
Colour in Summer:
Green, bluish-green undersides
Colour in Fall:
Green, Purple
Shapes:
Elliptic, Obovate, Ovate
Apices:
Emarginate or retuse
Bases:
Obtuse, Rounded
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
Deciduous-semi-evergreen twining vine, palmate compound
Inflorescence Type:
Raceme, Floriferous
Flower Morphology:
Monoecious plant
Number Of Petals:
0
Ovary Position:
Superior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White, Yellow, Purple, Dark-red, Brown (Chocolate-brown; white-flowered plant is cv. 'Albiflorus'.)
Flower Scent:
Fragrant, Spicy
Flower Time at Peak:
Mar, Apr
Additional Info:
sepals 3; male flowers 0.5-1cm wide; female flowers 2-3cm wide; vanilla scented
Fruit Type:
Aggregate fruit, Edible, Follicle
Fruit Colour:
Blue, Purple (numerous black seed)
Fruiting Time:
Aug, Sep
Additional Info:
Showy, Edible, Persistent
Bark Morphology:
Lightly fissured
Bark or Stem Colour:
Red, Brown
Organ Modifications:
Twining stems, (twining stems)
Propagation:
Seed, Greenwood cuttings, Division - below ground parts
Maintenance:
Medium
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant, Deer resistant, Drought tolerant)
