Have You Seen Any Kudzu Yet (Richmond, Mount Vernon: new house, vs., moving)

[Caladium]

Kudzu is a wildly aggressive vine that is moving northward. Like something out of a horror movie, it can cover (and smother) large trees and sometimes entire groves of trees. Photos have been published of it swallowing abandoned cars and buildings.

It used to extend only as far north as Richmond, but lately has been spotted in New York. I saw some down in Mason Neck, so I know it's in Nova.

So my question is.... have you seen any dramatic patches around here?

[cdmurphy]

I'm from Georgia, so I know kudzu. I don't recall seeing any around here.

Down there, people use it to make baskets, jelly, soap, and all kinds of stuff. Might as well use it if you've got it.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by cdmurphy

I'm from Georgia, so I know kudzu. I don't recall seeing any around here.

Down there, people use it to make baskets, jelly, soap, and all kinds of stuff. Might as well use it if you've got it.

I think we ought to chop it up, mix with a little asphalt, and use it for street paving.

If somebody could come up with a way to turn it into fuel, they'd make a fortune. Talk about the ultimate renewable resource.

[saganista]

My neighbor and I spent five years conquering kudzu that had gotten loose on a lot between our properties. A couple of years after that, a builder put a new house on that lot, and the second year, the kudzu returned. Apparently, he unearthed some surviving underground runners with his digging. This is the third year of trying to contain that new outbreak, and we seem to have it under control at the present time. So, that would be about a dozen years, all told. Over those years, it has killed quite a number of trees, ranging from 40-foot pines to dogwoods to large specimen crepe myrtles. The last thing you want to see around your yard this year is some vine with beautiful clustered purple-and-white blossoms on it. That would be kudzu...

[Caladium]

Oh man, sounds like an epic battle. We've been lucky so far out my way but I suppose sooner or later I'll have to learn how to deal with it. Sag, what are you two doing to contain it?

[saganista]

Basically, cut it and dig it as deep and as far and as often as you possibly can. It's laborious work. Very tough to do in the summer heat. The ground-level runners can extend for hundreds of feet and they develop rooting sub-stations along the way. The underground runners are usually ½-1 inch in diameter, but older ones can be 2-3 inches and spawn thousands of feet of vine above ground. Fortunately, the leaves and runners are quite distinctive once you are used to them, so the stuff is fairly easy to spot. Also fortunately for us in NoVa, a cold winter will seriously set kudzu back. There was less to do this Spring than I had feared, but I expect the Fall will still call for a major assault.

[Alicia Bradley]

Oh yes - I even saw lots north of here in MD.

[slowlane3]

Yes, there is lots of Kudzu in the DC - MD - NoVA area. Even 20 years ago, I saw some near Lebanon, PA.

[normie]

I've seen it down by Mount Vernon. There isn't any near me that I know of. Maybe the deer eat it? Deer vs. kudzu would be the ultimate showdown.

[thatdurncat13]

Well that's just what I want to hear. I wondered what that stuff was. I noticed this year I have some strange pretty little purple and white flowers all over a portion of my yard and it is connected to vines. I've got about a 30x30 ft. spread. The leaves are about 2" across. It also has a certain smell to it. On the other side of the yard I've got some smaller vines in a lighter green where the leaves are about 1/4 to 1/2" across. Same thing?? And that's only what I've paid attention to. There's probably more. I'm in southern Culpeper Co. Can anyone post a picture? I'm not set up to.