Pueraria montana seed

LATIN NAME: Pueraria montana

COMMON NAME: Kudzu

The kudzu coils the long, twining stems over the fences and the low trees, the broad, three-lobed leaves crowding the stems, and the whole plant carries the heavy, green, quick look of the warm hillside. The fast-growing, perennial vine carries the large, three-lobed, downy leaves along the twining stems that reach far and wide, and the small, purple, pea-like flowers in the long, upright, fragrant clusters, through the late summer, one of the heavy, bright sights of the warm hillside, drawing the bees, to be followed by the flat, hairy, brown pods with the small, hard seeds. The hard seeds have a very long record as the fine, soil-holding vines of the warm lands, and the plant is a historic presence of the warm hillside. It is a plant of the open, sunny, deep, rich, moist, well-drained ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The kudzu is a historic subject of the plant science, and the pea-like flowers keep showing up in the work on the twining vines. The way the small, purple, pea-like flowers form in the long, upright, fragrant clusters has been studied closely, and it keeps appearing in the studies of the twining vines, the broad leaves and the members of the pea family. The hard seeds and the heavy habit have also made it a fine study vine, and the kudzu is a regular subject of the work on the pea-like flowers of the warm world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The kudzu is a heavy, useful plant of the warm hillside and the study collection. The large, three-lobed, downy leaves along the twining stems carry the heavy look of the warm hillside, one of the heavy, bright sights of the warm hillside, drawing the bees, and the hard seeds have a very long record as the fine, soil-holding vines of the warm lands, the long stems coming to the cover of the bare banks, the deep roots to the old kitchens, and the steady study of the old botanists, while the small, purple, pea-like flowers in the long, upright, fragrant clusters open through the late summer, to be followed by the flat, hairy, brown pods with the small, hard seeds. It is one of the fine choices for the warm hillside, the cover bank and the study collection, and it has been written about in the botanical and the agricultural papers for the hard seeds and the very long history. Where the spread is not welcome it is best kept to the places where the spread is welcome, so check the local advice before planting. It is a heavy, useful plant of the open, sunny, deep, rich, moist, well-drained garden.

The kudzu seeds start easily in a sandy, gritty loam kept warm and moist. The young vines are quick and strong, and they appreciate the deep, rich ground of the open bank.

To grow the kudzu from seed, sow the small, hard seeds directly into the deep pot of sandy, gritty loam, then cover them lightly, keep the pot in a bright, warm spot and water gently. The seedlings appear within a couple of weeks, and they grow on fast. With the sun and the deep, rich, moist ground, the twining coils will climb over the warm months.

Kudzu is a fast-growing woody, somewhat hairy vine that may grow to a length of 18 metres (60 feet) in one season and features a substantial taproot. It has large compound leaves with three broad leaflets with hairy margins. The plant bears long racemes of late-blooming reddish purple flowers and flat hairy seed pods. The plant spreads vegetatively with stolons and rhizomes that root to form new clonal plants.