kudzu
(Pueraria montana var. lobata)
This species is Introduced in the United States
Appearance
Pueraria montana var. lobata is a climbing, deciduous vine capable of reaching lengths of over 100 ft. (30.5 m) in a single season. Its fleshy taproots can reach 7 in. (18 cm) in width and grow to 9 ft. (3.8 m) deep. These roots can weigh up to 400 lbs. (180 kg).
Foliage
Leaves are alternate, compound (with three, usually lobed, leaflets), and up to 5.4 in. (15 cm) long.
Flowers
Flowering occurs in midsummer, when 0.5 in. (1.3 cm) long, purple, fragrant flowers hang, in clusters, in the axils of the leaves.
Fruit
Fruit are brown, hairy, flat, 3 in. (7.6 cm) long, 0.3 in. (0.8 cm) wide seed pods. Each pod can contain 3-10 hard seeds.
Ecological Threat
Preferred habitat includes open, disturbed areas such as roadsides, right-of-ways, forest edges, and old fields. Pueraria montana var. lobata often grows over, shades out, and kills all other vegetation, including trees. It is native to Asia and was first introduced into the United States in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. It was widely planted throughout the eastern United States in an attempt to control erosion.
Citations
Winston, R.L., Andreas, J.E., Milan, J., DesCamp, W., Randell, C.B., and M. Schwarzländer. 2014. New Invaders of the Northwest. United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team. FHTET-2014-12. Retrieved from https://www.fs.fed.us/foresthealth/technology/pdfs/FHTET-2014-12_NW_New_Invaders.pdf
Resources
- A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests - USDA Forest Service
- Biological Control of Invasive Plants in the Eastern United States - USDA Forest Service
- Southeast Exotic Pest Plant Council Invasive Plant Manual - SE-EPPC
- Kudzu eradication trials with new herbicides - USDA Forest Service
- Kudzu eradication trials testing fifteen herbicides - USDA Forest Service
- Herbicide Tests For Kudzu Eradication - USDA Forest Service
- Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas - National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
- Weeds Gone Wild: Alien Plant Invaders of Natural Areas - Plant Conservation Alliance
- Fire Effects Information System - USDA Forest Service
- Weed of the Week - USDA Forest Service
- Invasive Species Management Plans for Florida - University of Florida - Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants
- Fact Sheet - Ontarios Invading Species Awareness Program
Selected Images
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State Lists - This map identifies those states that have this species on their invasive species list or law.
Invasive Listing Sources
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council
- Alachua County Cogongrass Initiative
- Apalachicola Invasive Working Group
- City of Ann Arbor Michigan Parks and Recreation
- Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
- Delaware Invasive Species Council
- Florida Invasive Plant Council - Plant List - Category I
- Florida Noxious Weeds
- Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council - Category 1
- Illinois Exotic Weed Act
- Illinois Noxious Weeds
- Indiana Invasive Species Council - Invasive Plant List
- Indiana Pest Species
- Invasive Plant Species of West Virginia
- Jil M. Swearingen, Survey of invasive plants occurring on National Park Service lands, 2000-2007
- John Randall, The Nature Conservancy, Survey of TNC Preserves, 1995.
- Kansas Noxious Weeds
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council - Severe Threat
- Maryland Cooperative Extension Service. 2003. Invasive Plant Control in Maryland. Home and Garden Information Center, Home and Garden Mimeo HG88. 4 pp.
- Maryland Department of Natural Resources Policy: Restriction on Planting Exotic Invasive Plants
- Maryland Invasive Species Council - Invasive Species of Concern in Maryland
- Massachusetts Noxious Weeds
- Massachusetts Prohibited Plant List
- Michigan’s Invasive Species Watch List
- Mississippi Noxious Weeds
- Missouri Noxious Weeds
- Missouri SRISP Species List
- National Park Service, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Plant Management Team Invasive Plant List
- Native Plant Society of Oregon, 2008
- New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee. 2005. Guide to Invasive Upland Plant Species in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food Plant Industry Division and New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee.
- New Hampshire Prohibited Invasive Species
- New Invaders of the Northwest
- New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team 2017 Invasive Species List
- Nonnative Invasive Species in Southern Forest and Grassland Ecosystems
- Ohio Invasive Species Council
- Ohio Noxious Weeds
- Oregon Noxious Weeds
- Pacific Northwest Exotic Pest Plant Council, 1998
- Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Invasive Plants
- Pennsylvania Noxious Weeds
- Pennsylvania Regulations for Controlled Plants and Noxious Weeds
- Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas
- South Carolina Invasive Pest Council
- Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council
- Texas Noxious Weeds
- Virginia Invasive Plant Species List
- Washington Noxious Weeds
- WeedUS - Database of Plants Invading Natural Areas in the United States
- West Virginia Invasive Species Strategic Plan and Volunteer Guidelines 2014
- West Virginia Native Plant Society, Flora West Virginia Project, and West Virginia Curatorial Database System, September 3, 1999
- West Virginia Noxious Weeds
- Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40
Taxonomic Rank
| Domain: Eukarya |
| Kingdom: Plantae |
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta |
| Class: Magnoliopsida |
| Superorder: Rosanae |
| Order: Fabales |
| Family: Fabaceae |
| Genus: Pueraria |
| Species: Pueraria montana |
| Pueraria montana var. lobata |
References
Common Name Reference: USDA, NRCS. 2010. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.
Scientific Name Reference: USDA, NRCS. 2010. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.