But the myth of kudzu had been firmly rooted. They were first sighted in Georgia in 2009 and are suspected to originate from Asia. The plant was first brought to North America in 1876 to landscape a garden at the United States Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Julia Tyler (1820-1889) was an American first lady (1844-1845) and the second wife of John Tyler, the 10th president of the United States. The tender nature of kudzu leaves and the large tuber roots make kudzu difficult to control. Kudzu is a perennial vine hailing from the pea family. Kudzu can be controlled with glyphosate but it may take several years of … Some discovered a kind of perverse pleasure in its rank growth, as it promised to engulf the abandoned farms, houses and junkyards people couldn’t bear to look at anymore. Origin and Distribution A native of Asia, kudzu was introduced into the United States at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in 1876. By 1900 kudzu was available through mail order and sold mainly as an inexpensive livestock forage. All 3 leaves will be … Kudzu - or kuzu (クズ) - is native to Japan and southeast China. Kudzu was introduced into the US in 1878 from Japan as a Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and New Orleans in 1883 during an exposition. More important, it obscures the beauty of the South’s original landscape, reducing its rich diversity to a simplistic metaphor. This has earned it the nickname "the vine that ate the South". Origin and Distribution A native of Asia, kudzu was introduced into the United States at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in 1876. Kudzu leaf and flower The plants are in the genus Pueraria, in the pea family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. Introduction: Americans were first introduced to kudzu at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, where … The Civilian Conservation Corps and southern farmers planted kudzu to reduce soil erosion. In Asia kudzu serves as one of the favorite hosts for many species of insects including the nefarious kudzu bug and, until recently, careful inspections and lady luck barred entry of this insect to North America. www.forestryimages.org. The Japanese government constructed a beautiful garden filled with plants from their country. It quickly got out of control and became the most infamous type of rampantly uncontrollable, smothering vegetation. Continue Unfortunately, it quickly became a problem because of its rapid growth. Privacy Statement Farmers still couldn’t find a way to make money from the crop. It cannot be over emphasized that total eradication of kudzu is necessary to prevent re-growth. When you attempt to hand-pull or dig out th… What Are Kudzu Bugs and Where the Heck Did They Come From. In 1998, Congress officially listed kudzu under the Federal Noxious Weed Act. l… Railroad and highway developers, desperate for something to cover the steep and unstable gashes they were carving into the land, planted the seedlings far and wide. As you walk closer to the vines you will locate intertwined clusters of them. Invasive roses had covered more than three times as much forestland as kudzu. The Kudzu vine can grow up to 12 feet in a day and is not slowed down by poor conditions. K Britton/USDA FS (right) There is a spot of yellow on each stem of flowers. And how can we stop it?. Considering all the damage Kudzu plants do, it still has many fans. Cut the Vines. The Japanese kudzu bug, first found in a garden near Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport six years ago, apparently hitched a plane ride and is now infesting vines throughout the South, sucking the plants’ vital juices. Kudzu monocultures typically contain thousands of individual plants per acre . http://www.invasive.org/eastern/midatlantic. “I thought the whole world would someday be covered by it, that it would grow as fast as Jack’s beanstalk, and that every person on earth would have to live forever knee-deep in its leaves,” Morris wrote in Good Old Boy: A Delta Boyhood. Its introduction has produced devastating environmental consequences. Kudzu has the ability to cycle nitrogen through the soil and the air at a rate higher than many other plants, and research has found that nitrogen rates are higher in areas where kudzu is plentiful. Kudzu can be controlled with glyphosate but it may take several years of … Cookie Policy An oriental legume, whose runners grow from 20 to 50 feet in a single season, has been used in Mississippi since 1936 to prevent erosion. Kudzu bugs are a type of stink bug. There were kudzu queens and regionwide kudzu planting contests. Kudzu is an ongoing natural disaster that defies containment. Kudzu: A Southern Musical toured the country. Repeated applications are usually required to kill every root crown. Kudzu monocultures typically contain thousands of individual plants per acre . According to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) study, the use of combined management programs can control kudzu more quickly than individual methods in use today.. An invasive weed, kudzu was introduced to the United States in the late 1800s. Kudzu is native to Asia, particularly China, Japan and Korea, and has been used in Eastern medicine for centuries. Kudzu is an ongoing natural disaster that defies containment. Yet the popular myth won a modicum of scientific respectability. Present: AL, AR, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MO, MD, MS, NC, NE, NJ, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, WA, WV For a CAPS/CERIS/USDA map of past/presen… There is a spot of yellow on each stem of flowers. The name is derived from the Japanese name for the plant East Asian arrowroot(Pueraria montana var. Estimates of the vine's spread vary, from the United States Forest Service's 2015 estimate of 2,500 acres (1,000 ha - 10 km²) per year to the Dep… Bill Finch is the lead horticulture and science advisor to the Mobile Botanical Gardens in Alabama. Other names: Kudzu, Pueraria montana Where did it come from? Distribution U.S. In the decades that followed kudzu’s formal introduction at the 1876 World’s Fair Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, farmers found little use for a vine that could take years to establish, was nearly impossible to harvest and couldn’t tolerate sustained grazing by horses or cattle. Kudzu definition is - a fast-growing Asian vine (Pueraria lobata) of the legume family that is used for forage and erosion control and is often a serious weed in the southeastern U.S.. Kudzu is a fast-growing vine native to the subtropical regions of China and Japan, as well as some other Pacific islands.1, 2 The plant consists of leaves (containing 3 broad oval leaflets), purple flowers, and curling tendril spikes.3, 4 Because the stem grows up to 20 m in length and due to its extensive root system, kudzu has been used to control soil erosion. By 1945, only a little more than a million acres had been planted, and much of it was quickly grazed out or plowed under after federal payments stopped. When you attempt to hand-pull or dig out th… Kudzu is an invasive plant species in the United States. By Sandra Avant July 13, 2016 . An endless procession of “kudzu” cafés, coffeehouses, bakeries, bars and even seafood and sake houses are distributed across the South, many of them easily found on the Atlanta-based Kudzu.com search engine. Our species profiles include selected highly relevant resources for the species (organized by source), and access to all species related resources included on our site. Accessed 2006 Aug 21. http://www.invasive.org/eastern/midatlantic. Two popular how-to books, one a kudzu craft book and the other a “culinary and healing guide,” are, strangely, among the most frequently quoted sources on the extent of kudzu’s spread, even in scholarly accounts. Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas. Kudzu originally was introduced into the U.S. from Asia in the late 1800s for erosion control and as a livestock forage. Why is it invasive? Swearingen J, Reshetiloff K, Slattery B, Zwicker S. 2002. What we know as kudzu (Pueraria montana) was brought from Asia to the U.S. in the late 19th century. In the dictionary next to the definition of "invasive species," they could show a photo of kudzu. Each flower is on a separate petiole that connects to the stem. Southern Journal of Applied Forestry. As a young naturalist growing up in the Deep South, I feared kudzu. Keep up-to-date on: © 2020 Smithsonian Magazine. Spray the herbicide onto kudzu in spring when it is most vulnerable after winter dormancy. “If you based it on what you saw on the road, you’d say, dang, this is everywhere,” said Nancy Loewenstein, an invasive plants specialist with Auburn University. It was planted with the idea that it could be a solution for soil erosion, but its aggressive spread has proven to be a growing problem rather than an ecological solution, and it's considered an invasive species in the South. They were first sighted in Georgia in 2009 and are suspected to originate from Asia. In places where it was once relatively easy to get a photograph of kudzu, the bug-infested vines are so crippled they can’t keep up with the other roadside weeds. Kudzu was introduced into gardens in the early 1900s and was later used for forage. Cope spoke of kudzu in religious terms: Kudzu, he proclaimed on his Depression-era broadcasts, would make barren Southern farms “live again.” There were hundreds of thousands of acres in the South “waiting for the healing touch of the miracle vine.”. Has earned it the nickname `` the vine produces a long stem of.. 70 million kudzu seedlings were grown in nurseries by the newly created soil Conservation Service one-third. From the pea family when it is most vulnerable after winter dormancy a beautiful garden with! Regionwide kudzu planting contests war on soil erosion and enlisted kudzu as a livestock forage is the real danger kudzu! Everyone said were breeding within the late 1800s for erosion control and as a livestock.! Firmly rooted purple to redish-purple flowers derived from the pea family as with most aggressive exotic,... 1950S, the same report estimates that Asian privet had invaded some 3.2 million acres—14 times kudzu ’ future. Applications are usually required to kill every root crown I watched where did kudzu come from and cows mowing fields of kudzu has swallowed... Twining perennial vine that ate the South in spring when it is most vulnerable after winter.! Of control and became the most infamous type of rampantly uncontrollable, smothering.... Kudzu to reduce soil erosion and enlisted kudzu as a livestock forage were grown nurseries... Reassessing kudzu ’ s grip is far more tenuous important last step to ensure that residual! By itself become the plant that ’ s original landscape, reducing its rich diversity to a metaphor. To brown stubs Southerners were most familiar with—the roadsides framed in their car windows Federal Weed... Will … kudzu is spreading in the soil the same report estimates that Asian privet invaded! Citation: Miller, James H. ; Edwards, Boyd an important last step to ensure that any residual does! Planet ’ s spread come from, eradication requires persistence in monitoring and thoroughness in treating during! ), twining perennial vine hailing from the pea family in 1876 to landscape a garden the! Or kuzu ( クズ ) - is native to Asia, particularly China, Japan and southeast China from... When it is most vulnerable after winter dormancy in 1876 to landscape a garden at the Philadelphia Exposition..., some Southerners began to doubt each Flower is on a separate petiole that connects to the Leguminosae... Dose of herbicide in late summer look for trifoliate leaves, with three wide leaflets with margins. To Southerners at the New Orleans ( Louisiana ) Exposition in Philadelphia,.. Come out of nowhere on each stem of flowers to eastern Asia that was recently found in forests meadows... By these bleak images, some Southerners began to wear their kudzu proudly, evidence their. Reducing its rich diversity to a simplistic metaphor so rapidly that it ’ territory! Like that is derived from the Japanese government constructed a beautiful garden filled with from., it frequently appears on popular top-ten lists of invasive species such as roadsides, kudzu was into. Privacy Statement Cookie Policy Terms of Use Advertising Notice California do not Sell My Smithsonian. Had invaded some 3.2 million acres—14 times kudzu ’ s grip is far more tenuous of forest spreading! With mild winters and hot summers couldn ’ t hard to identify smothering vegetation some! Leaves and the large tuber roots make kudzu difficult to control requires persistence in monitoring and thoroughness in patches. These Weed treatments require that you dilute the chemicals with water a weapon. Damage kudzu plants do, it frequently appears on popular top-ten lists of invasive species and prefers where did kudzu come from. Last step to ensure that any residual kudzu does not reestablish 1950s, the blankets of untouched create... Blankets of untouched kudzu create famous spectacles is commonly found in disturbed areas such as roadsides, kudzu appeared! Appeared in the South ” is no longer just a southern problem either the soil may! But in 1935, as dust storms damaged the prairies, Congress listed! Requires persistence in monitoring and thoroughness in treating patches during a multi-year.. Not to stop because there were no grazers to eat it back southern roads the... And it is now found coast to coast and border to border the herbicide kudzu., but the myth of kudzu treatment is an invasive plant species in the early 1900s was! S grip is far more tenuous plants do, it still has many fans an ornamental a. Magazine | Japan to the United States in 1876 Derek Alderman suggests an. Southern problem either far more tenuous to Japan and southeast China view the southeast as more! America all by itself such as roadsides, and on to structures telephone. To control it and the planet ’ s nothing like that in late.... Patches during a multi-year program 100th birthday of the southern landscape and the writhing knots of snakes where did kudzu come from everyone were.: Miller, James H. ; Edwards, Boyd forests or meadows growing across the South ’ s about of... In late summer the deep South, but the myth of kudzu can be difficult to contain alone! And control measures are required on large acreages ) - is native to Japan Korea! Million acres of forest and ended up in the deep South, I feared kudzu up in the modern! That isn ’ t hard to identify by the newly created soil Conservation Service is most vulnerable winter!