Stauntonia latifolia Seeds | Stauntonia Vine

Dark brown Stauntonia Vine seeds, flat and oval, embedded in pale fruit pulp — Stauntonia Vine (*Stauntonia latifolia*): Lardizabalaceae, a woody climber of the forests of southern China and the eastern Himalaya.

LATIN NAME: Stauntonia latifolia

COMMON NAME: Stauntonia Vine

Plant Profile

Stauntonia Vine is an evergreen woody climber of the lardizabala family, twining to six metres or more with palmately divided leaves of five to seven glossy leaflets. In spring it hangs clusters of small, bell-shaped, fragrant flowers in cream and soft purple, and in autumn it carries elongated purple fruit that splits to reveal a sweet, translucent pulp around the seed.

It comes from the forests of Yunnan, Guangxi and the eastern Himalaya, where it scrambles through thickets and up trees in moist, sheltered valleys. The genus is named for George Staunton, who sent plants from China to England in the late eighteenth century.

Science & Biotechnology

The genus is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants, so a single vine will flower but rarely fruit. Its pollination has been little studied, though the pendant, bell-shaped flowers and their scent suggest small bees or flies working in the shade of the forest.

Stauntonia belongs to the Lardizabalaceae, a small family of climbers that also includes Akebia and Holboellia, and molecular work on the family has used it to untangle relationships among the Asian genera. The fruit pulp is rich in pectin and simple sugars, and the stems contain triterpenoid saponins of the kind found across the family. The family is an old line within the Ranunculales, and its sparse fossil record has been used to date the divergence of the lardizabala climbers.

Uses & Benefits

The fruit is edible and sweet, though seedy, and is gathered from the wild in southern China; it is not a commercial crop. In the garden the vine is grown for its evergreen screen and its spring scent, and it will cover a pergola or a north-facing wall where little else will climb.

Regional practice uses the stems of several lardizabala climbers as a substitute for the medicinal wood of Akebia, but the species are not interchangeable and the substitution has caused confusion in the herb trade. Grow it as an ornamental, not as a remedy. It can also be grown in a large container for a few years, though it eventually needs open ground.

Growing from Seed

Sow fresh seed in autumn, cover it lightly, and keep the pots cold and moist through winter; germination is slow and may not begin until spring. A cold stratification of six to eight weeks improves the result, and fresh seed germinates far better than stored.

Plant out in moist, humus-rich soil in part shade, with a strong support from the start, since the vine makes rapid growth once it is away. Water through dry spells for the first two years. Plant at least two, of different sexes, if fruit is wanted; prune after flowering to keep the growth within bounds. In a cold frame, protect the young shoots from slugs, which find them as soon as they push through.

Our Take

An evergreen climber for a shady wall, with scented spring flowers and an edible autumn fruit if both sexes are grown. Slow to start, then vigorous and long-lived.

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