KUDZU
THE FAST GROWING VINE
EXPLOSIVE GROWTH
KUDZU IS A THREE-LEAFED PERENNIAL VINE
THAT SPROUTS FROM A CENTRAL ROOT
PRODUCING AS MANY AS 30 VINES IN ALL DIRECTIONS.1
KUDZU CAN GROW UP TO:2
1 FOOT
A DAY
60 FEET
IN A SEASON
150,000 ACRES
A YEAR
ABOUT TWICE THE SIZE OF THE FLORIDA KEYS
WHERE IT GROWS3
Kudzu grows best where winters are mild,
summer temperatures are above 80°F
and annual rainfall is 40+ inches.
Especially prevalent in
the Southern states,
where it earned its
vivid nickname.
EASTERN INVASION
KUDZU WAS BROUGHT TO THE UNITED STATES
FROM JAPAN IN 1876, AS AN ORNAMENTAL
VINE SHADING THE JAPANESE PAVILION AT
THE PHILADELPHIA CENTENNIAL EXPOSITION. 4
IN JAPAN, WITH ITS COOLER CLIMATE, KUDZU
IS KEPT IN CHECK. 5
MIRACLE VINE TURNED MENACE
KUDZU WAS ORIGINALLY VIEWED AS A MIRACLE VINE, PROVIDING COVER FOR
ERODED LAND, EROSION CONTROL ALONG DITCHES AND CHEAP FOOD FOR
LIVESTOCK. BUT BY 1972, THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT
OF AGRICULTURE (USDA) DECLARED IT A WEED.6
WHY IS IT PROBLEMATIC?
KUDZU VINES WILL EVENTUALLY GROW OVER ALMOST
ANY FIXED OBJECT IN THEIR PATH — INCLUDING
PARKED CARS, BUILDINGS AND OTHER VEGETATION.7
THE SMOTHERING VINES CAN KILL OTHER PLANTS IN
YOUR YARD AND ELIMINATE NATIVE SPECIES BY
BLOCKING OUT LIGHT OR BRINGING DOWN LIMBS
WITH THEIR SHEER WEIGHT. 8
AN EXPENSIVE INVADER
KUDZU COSTS AROUND
$500 MILLION ANNUALLY
IN LOST CROPLAND AND EFFORTS TO CONTROL IT.9
DON’T BE FOOLED BY ITS SWEET CHARMS
PINK AND PURPLE KUDZU VINES BLOSSOM IN JULY AND EMIT A SWEET SMELL,
WHICH CAN BE DETECTED FROM HUNDREDS OF FEET AWAY.7
KUDZU IS ALSO EDIBLE. IT’S CONSIDERED A
DELICACY IN JAPAN, WHERE IT’S MADE INTO A
SWEET TOFU.10 IN THE U.S., SOUTHERN COOKS
HAVE DEVELOPED CREATIVE WAYS TO PREPARE
KUDZU LEAVES, INCLUDING SERVING THEM RAW,
SAUTEED, DEEP-FRIED AND BAKED.11
KUDZU HAS EVEN HAD PRACTICAL PURPOSES OVER THE YEARS. IN WORLD
WAR II, MILITARY PLANNERS USED IT TO PROVIDE NATURAL CAMOUFLAGE
TO COVER MILITARY INSTALLATIONS, AIRFIELDS AND EQUIPMENT.12
WILD BLACKBERRY
OVERSTAYS ITS WELCOME
WHAT IS IT & WHERE IS IT FOUND?
WILD BLACKBERRY IS A VIGOROUS, FRUIT-BEARING
SHRUB THAT RAPIDLY GROWS ON TALL, STIFF CANES.
AT FIRST, THESE PLANTS MAY SEEM WELCOME
BECAUSE OF THEIR FRUIT, BUT THEY QUICKLY GROW
INTO A TANGLED MASS OF PRICKLY BRAMBLES.
HOW IT SPREADS QUICKLY
THE TOPS OF NEW PLANTS TIP OVER AND TOUCH
THE GROUND, WHERE THEY START NEW ROOTS.
ANIMALS SUCH AS BIRDS, SQUIRRELS AND FOX
EAT THE BERRIES AND DISTRIBUTE THE SEEDS
ELSEWHERE IN THEIR DROPPINGS.13
A SMALL PIECE OF STEM LEFT IN THE GROUND
CAN EVENTUALLY FORM A MASSIVE THICKET
AS HIGH AS 15 FEET TALL, WITH CANES TO
40 FEET LONG.14
THE MOST-INVASIVE SPECIES
Himalayan
Cutleaf
Both
HIMALAYAN
BLACKBERRY
Himalayan has five
oval toothed leaves.15
LONG-LIVED INVADER
WILD BLACKBERRY PLANTS CAN LIVE FOR
25 YEARS OR LONGER.13
CUTLEAF
BLACKBERRY
Cutleaf has five,
deep-lobed and
jagged leaflets.16
25
YEARS
WHY IS IT PROBLEMATIC?
WILD BLACKBERRIES OVERRUN OTHER VEGETATION,
SMOTHERING AND BLOCKING ACCESS TO SUNLIGHT.14
THE PLANTS FORM DENSE THICKETS OF THORNY
STEMS AND ROOT SYSTEMS THAT CAN OVERRUN
YARDS AND HOUSES.17
BEWARE THE SWEET TEMPTATION
WHILE WILD BLACKBERRIES ARE SAFE TO EAT, THEY’RE PRICKLY AND THE
THICK BRAMBLE PROVIDES SHELTER AND FOOD FOR UNWANTED PESTS IN
YOUR YARD, LIKE RATS, SNAKES, WASPS, CHIGGERS AND POISON IVY.18
OVERTAKE KUDZU AND WILD BLACKBERRY
BEFORE THEY OVERTAKE YOU
KUDZU AND WILD BLACKBERRY CAN SPREAD QUICKLY. THE MOST EFFECTIVE
WAY TO CONTROL THEM IS TO APPLY A LIQUID WEED KILLER SUCH AS
ROUNDUP ® READY-TO-USE WILD BLACKBERRY PLUS VINE & BRUSH KILLER.
THE FORMULA IS SPECIALLY DESIGNED TO KILL TOUGH WEEDS AND BRUSH.
PLUS, IT KILLS TO THE ROOTS, SO THE PLANTS WON'T COME BACK.
SEE WWW.ROUNDUP.COM FOR FULL DETAILS.
http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/pubs/midatlantic/pumol.htm. Accessed December 2015
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090719185107.htm. Accessed December 2015
http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=PUMO. Accessed December 2015
4
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/kudzu-love-it-or-run-68095358/#D9XzThpF2K7ZhOFV.99. Accessed December 2015
5
https://www.eduplace.com/kids/hmsc/3/b/cricket/cktcontent_3b4.shtml. Accessed January 2016
6
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/kudzu.aspx. Accessed January 2016
7
http://www.jjanthony.com/kudzu/. Accessed December 2015
8
http://www.invasivespecies.wa.gov/documents/priorities/KudzuFactSheet.pdf. Accessed December 2015
9
http://www.sciencedaily.com/terms/kudzu.htm. Accessed December 2015
10
http://www.kudzuworld.com/faqs/kudzu/index.en.aspx. Accessed January 2017.
11
http://www.livestrong.com/article/474310-how-to-cook-eat-kudzu/. Accessed December 2015
12
http://www.bio.brandeis.edu/fieldbio/Verrill_Wolf/pages/Kudzu.html. Accessed December 2015
13
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7434.html. Accessed December 2015;
14
http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/animalsAndPlants/noxious-weeds/weed-identification/blackberry.aspx. Accessed January 2017; http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7434.html. Accessed December 2015
15
http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=RUAR9. Accessed December 2015
16
http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=RULA. Accessed December 2015
17
https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1876&dat=19760728&id=m3gsAAAAIBAJ&sjid=M8wEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6800,4643379&hl=en. Accessed January 2016
18
http://www.todayshomeowner.com/how-to-pick-wild-blackberries-and-raspberries/. Accessed December 2015
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