The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
kudzu
(kd´z) (KEY) , plant of the family Leguminosae (pulse family), native to Japan. Kudzu (Pueraria thunbergiana) has a woody stem, broad leaves, and clusters of large purple flowers. It is used as a cover crop, for pasturage and hay, and for controlling soil erosion; in Asia, it is cultivated for its edible tubers and hemplike fiber. It was introduced in the United States c.1876 as a decorative vine and is now escaped from cultivation in the South, where it has become a noxious weed. Kudzu is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Rosales, family Leguminosae.
d´z
) (KEY) , plant of the family Leguminosae (pulse family), native to Japan. Kudzu (Pueraria thunbergiana) has a woody stem, broad leaves, and clusters of large purple flowers. It is used as a cover crop, for pasturage and hay, and for controlling soil erosion; in Asia, it is cultivated for its edible tubers and hemplike fiber. It was introduced in the United States c.1876 as a decorative vine and is now escaped from cultivation in the South, where it has become a noxious weed. Kudzu is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Rosales, family Leguminosae.
