Kudzu vine

Kudzu vine is a perennial scrambling, trailing, or climbing vine, approximately 30 metres long, originally from Japan.

Description

• Leaflets are in groups of three and are dark green, and slightly lobed with hairy undersides.

• Flowers grow on spikes, are fragrant, red/purple, and pea-like.

• Roots are fibrous and semi-woody that grow to three metres deep.

• Seed pods are flattened, hairy, brown, and bean-like.

• Seeds are dispersed by birds but mostly via vegetative growth. Stems root at the nodes when they contact the ground.

• Habitats include forest, forest margins, riparian areas, scrub, shrubland, plantations, and roadsides.

What you need to know

Kudzu vine is an aggressive competitor in native forest, shrubland, and riparian margins. It alters forest disturbance regimes, out-shades, and girdles small trees. Allelopathic.

Management approach

Kudzu vine is declared an unwanted organism by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) because it is capable of causing harm to the natural environment, physical resources or human health in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

These species pose a high risk to our environment, economy, recreation, and cultural values.

Rules

Any species declared a pest, including unwanted organisms, cannot be sold or be in a place where plants are being sold. Pest plants cannot be propagated, bred, or multiplied, communicated, released, or cause to be released, or otherwise spread.

Control

Do not attempt to undertake control of kudzu vine yourself. Report any sightings to us.