Scientific Name: Akebia quinata
Common Name: chocolate vine
Family Name: Lardizabalaceae
Origin: S.E. Asia / Japan / China
Hardiness Zone: Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Plant Type: Broadleaf evergreen, Vine or climber
Mature Size: 7 - 10m x 3 - 4m (height x width)
Habit: Arching, Twiggy
Form: Climbing
Texture: Medium
Landscape Uses: Arbors or trellis, Attract birds
Exposure: Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade
Soil or Media: Well-drained
Leaves: Compound, Alternate, Soft flexible, Palmate venation, Glabrous, Odd-pinnate, Leaflets stalked, Elliptic, Obovate, Ovate, Entire
Flowers: Raceme, White, Yellow, Purple, Dark-red, Brown, Mar-Apr
Fruit: Aggregate fruit, Edible, Follicle, Blue, Purple, Aug-Sep, (Persistent)
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.