Species
Anredera cordifolia
Common Name(s)
Madeira vine
Family
Basellaceae
Flora Category
Vascular - Exotic
Structural Class
Dicotyledonous Lianes and Related Trailing Plants
Habitat
Terrestrial. Coastal localities, wasteland, especially shrub covered areas such as coastal gullies.
Features
Climbing vine with slender stems often reddish, ageing to dull brown. Leaves slightly succulent, less so when exposed to high light, shining, broadly oval shaped, up to 13 cm with small irregular tubers where they join to the stem. Tubers can accumulate to form large clusters. Long hanging racemes of small white fragrant flowers to 18cm long are produced January to April.
Similar Taxa
The stem tubers help distinguish this species from all other naturalised vines in NZ.
Flowering
January, February, March, April
Flower Colours
White
Year Naturalised
1940
Origin
trop S America
Reason For Introduction
Ornamental
Life Cycle Comments
Perennial.
Reproduction
reproduces vegetatively by producing knobbly tubers which are produced frequently in the leaf axils along the stems
Seed
fruit is not formed in New Zealand.
Dispersal
gravity, seawater, machinery, soil movement,
Tolerances
Tolerant to salt, prefers moist areas but can survive very harsh conditions and re-sprouts from corms when conditions are more favourable.
This page last updated on 31 Jul 2014