kudzu

     

Kuzu (クズ or 葛, Kuzu?), Pueraria lobata (syn. P. montana, P. thunbergiana), is one of about 20 species in the genus Pueraria in the pea family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. It is native to southern Japan and southeast China in eastern Asia. The name comes from the Japanese word for this plant, kuzu. The other species of Pueraria occur in southeast Asia, further south.

Trivia about kudzu

  • In the South, buildings have been engulfed & trees have been smothered by this Oriental vine gone wild
  • A fast-growing climbing vine all over the southern United States
  • Introduced from Asia in 1876 as a hay & to control soil erosion, this vine is now a menace in the southern U.S.