Habitat

• native to China, Korea, and Japan
• hardy to 4

Habit and Form

• a deciduous to semi-evergreen twining vine
• deciduous in zones 4 through 6
• fine textured vine
• grows 20' to 40'
• can grow upright on a structure or along the ground as a groundcover

Summer Foliage

• alternate, palmately compound leaves
• 5 leaflets with rounded or notched leaf tips
• leaflets are up to 3" long
• leaves are 4" to 7" across
• new leaves emerge purple-tinged
• mature leaves an attractive blue-green

Autumn Foliage

• no fall color

Flowers

• small purple-brown flowers
• held in groups of 2 to 5
• blooms in mid-May or earlier
• flower color often gets lost amongst the foliage
• on close inspection, flower are interesting
• fragrant
• flowers with 3 petals (sepals)

Fruit

• sausage-shaped, purplish pods, about 2.5" to 4" long
• seldom sets fruit under cultivation

Bark

• not important

Culture

• prefers moist, fertile, well-drained soils
• tolerates many soil types
• full sun to partial shade
• easily grown
• needs a support such as a wire fence for upright growth

Landscape Use

• as a screen with upright support
• groundcover
• useful for high quality summer foliage

Liabilities

• can be a rampant grower
• flowers not as conspicuous as one would like
• may be hard to find in commerce

ID Features

• twining vine
• blue-green, palmately compound leaves
• leaflets with a notch at the tip
• purple-brown flowers
• sausage-like fruit
• leaves tend toward semi-evergreen

Propagation

• by softwood cuttings

Cultivars/Varieties

'Alba' and 'Leucantha' - White-flowered forms with white fruit.

'Purple Bouquet' (Purple Bouquet™) - Described as a more compact growing selection with purple blooms.

'Rosea' - Lighter purple flowers than the species.

'Variegata' - Foliage is variegated with white. The flowers are pale pink.