Akebia quinata

Akebia quinata –commonly known as chocolate vine, five-leaf chocolate vine, or five-leaf akebia– is a shrub that is native to Japan, China and Korea, commonly used as an ornamental / edible plant in the United States and Europe. In its native habitat, it is often found on hills, in hedges, on trees, along forest edges and streams, and on mountainous slopes.

Description
Akebia quinata is a climbing evergreen shrub that grows to 10 m or more in height and has palmately compound leaves with five elliptic or obovate leaflets that are notched at the tip. The woody stems are greyish-brown with lenticels. The flowers are clustered in racemes and are chocolate-scented, with three or four sepals. The fruits are sausage-shaped pods which contain edible pulp. The gelatinous placentation contains seeds surrounded with white pulp, that has a sweet flavor.

Culinary
The fruit contains a sweet soft pulp resembling a white dragon fruit, eaten primarily in Japan as a seasonal delicacy. The rind, with a slight bitter taste, is used as vegetable, stuffed with ground meat and deep-fried.

Often eaten fresh, the Akebia fruit is best after it fully opens naturally on the vine. The fruiting season is from September to October. The seeds are very bitter and can even lead to throat irritation if chewed. They are discarded by spitting out or simply swallowing them whole. The fruit can be processed into jams, jellies, drinks and even added to smoothies or ice-creams.

Ornamental
Akebia quinata is often grown as an ornamental plant in the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia. It is primarily used to cover less attractive spots on the sides of businesses or a ground cover to prevent erosion of hills. The flowers bloom generally in April - May and produce a "chocolatey" aroma which is often compared to vanilla or sometimes nutmeg rather than chocolate.

Various breeders of the plant have created new subspecies with their own unique colored flowers. One of these is the "Silver Bells" Akebia which has silvery white flowers with purple stamen. (see photo in Gallery)

Medicinal
Akebia quinata consumption has been shown in-vitro to lower cholesterol levels present in the blood of rodents. Akebia also has the ability to regulate chemicals in the kidneys, liver and cardiovascular system making it a health food if regularly consumed.

The stem contains approximately 30% potassium salts thus causing a diuretic action.

The fruit is used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat urinary tract infections, scanty lactation, and rheumatoid arthritis.

Other
Traditionally, the vines have been used for basket-weaving which may help reduce the spread of this plant in the Eastern United States.

The dried rinds have been used in Japanese fertility festivals and due to their vulva-like appearance it is thought to increase the fertility of women, although there is no scientific evidence to support these claims.

Cultivation
Akebia prefers sandy soils with good drainage, and regular watering, though it is drought resistant. In some areas the plant is an invasive species to be avoided. This species is considered hardy in all of the United Kingdom and Europe (down to -15 to -20 °C). In the US, it suitable for hardiness zones 4–9.

Akebia quinata, and all Akebia species for that matter, will not produce fruit if not pollinated by a genetically different plant (e.g., male flowers from the mother plant or the male flowers from a clone of the mother plant will not be able to pollinate the female flowers). Two separate varieties or two Akebia grown from separate seeds are needed to produce to sausage-like fruits.

Etymology
Akebia comes from the Japanese vernacular name, akebi (木通)),  akebi was originally written as け derived from "to open" (開ける) and "fruit" (実), due to how its fruit splits open when ripe.  Quinata means 'divided into five' and is presumably a reference to its lobed leaves.

Akebia range
Akebia quinata is native to China, Japan (all major islands except Hokkaido ) and the Korean peninsula, but is cultivated globally. This map represents sightings of both wild and cultivated plants.

Akebia in North America
Akebia quinata is a minor invasive species in the majority of the East Coast and was introduced in 1845 as an ornamental plant. This is because the plant has no natural predators or diseases in North America and can grow as it pleases. Its shade tolerance and ability to endure full sun allow it to adapt to nearly all conditions it is grown in. In the East Coast, Akebia quinata has been reported in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Missouri, Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and as far north as Michigan and Wisconsin.

On the West Coast of the United States, Akebia quinata has not become a very invasive species. However, it has been reported in Washington State and Oregon.