Akebia trifoliata is a
deciduous liana with gray-black-brown barks in fields and mountains.
Leaves are alternate ternate compound leaves with a 2-14cm-long
petiole. The leaflets are ovate, 2-6cm in length, 1.5-4cm in width,
tips somewhat cave in, and the bases round, with large undulate
serrations on the margins. Flowers are monoecious; inflorescences
droop down from leaf axils in which dark purple flowers come.
Flowers lack petals, so sepals look like petals. The inflorescences
set 10 or more male flowers on the tips and females, 1-3 in number,
at the bases. Fruit (sap fruit), oblong, around 10cm long, ripens in
purple to split open in September. Bloom time: April-May. |