the flowers smell lovely and Akebia quinata supposedly makes tastey fruit, although i think it needs to be crosspollinated to do so (have another akebia in the area?). i had a neighbor in corvallis that had one onces, beautiful vine. i think the seeds may need to be given a cold dormancy period first. -ming

No pictures of the Akebia flower..It bloomed in the Spring and the flowers are a Mauve color, very pretty color and has a faint scent, nice but you really have to put your face in the little flower to smell it. I only have one plant and this year it REALLY took off...Maybe it takes a couple years to get going. My banana/palm garden is still a work in progress..We still have to get rid of some of the dreaded Yucky Yucca by the sidewalk, then we're gonna lay probably some large wood chips over the bed..I SO can't wait until next year..All the plants should be bigger..I have lots of other bananas in the backyard around my pond. knotz

Were you interested in perennial vines? How about clematis? If you are interested in butterfly gardening, you could consider the native aristolochia tomentosa (pipe vine or dutchman's pipe). It would give you lots of privacy as the leaves are very large. Although the flowers are hidden in the foliage, it is the larval food source for Pipe Vine Swallowtail butterflies. Although I'm not sure where to put it, I've ordered one this year from Brushwood Nursery. They specialize in vines and have a very nice website. I ordered from them the first time this year, having read good things about them on the clematis forum. Here is a link that might be useful: Brushwood

Hi, all: Flowers smell mildly sweet! I really love my Akebias--at least the quinatas. (And what was your first clue that I love my Akebias?) The trifoliata looks lousy much of the year then perks up for summer, but the quinata looks good most of the year. Still no fruit after five years, but I think I'll go hand-pollinate, now, too. I tasted the fruit in Walt Bubelis' broadleaf evergreen class at EDCC. I spat out the seeds. The "jelly" is sweetish, kind of loosely gelatinous. Interesting to try, but I don't think I'll be spreading it on my PB sandwiches. What's really cool, IMHO, is the pods. They can be pink or lavender. As for finding Akebias, I don't think they're rare at all these days. Try Molbak's or Sky. Or come over my house and take a bunch of clippings and try to root them. I'll probably try to layer a bunch of them this year. So you could also check with me in a few months. Hmmm. I've got to check out these Dioscoreas now. I didn't know that Azara is borderline hardy. I've seen several that look just fine after years in the ground. The variegated Azara is less hardy, though, from what I've read. Check out Trees of Seattle (Arthur Lee Jacobson) to see. Best, Cindy