Japanese Hydrangea Vine is a very large woody vine native to Korea and Japan. It has large clusters of showy white flowers and the shedding bark provides additional winter interest. This vine is an early summer bloomer and is excellent for a massed effect on brick or concrete walls, arbors, gazebos, or almost any free-standing garden structure. It clings and/or climbs not only by twining but also by disk-like aerial rootlets. This woody vine has an almost shrub-like appearance due to its lateral branches and is native to wooded valleys, stream banks, and on rocky mountain slopes. It is little known in the U.S. but is common in the deep forests of Japan.
This is a shade-tolerant plant that grows everywhere in full sun to full shade and rich, moist, well-drained soil; it will flower best in dappled to partial shade. It is drought tolerant once established but is intolerant of wet sites with standing water. It is somewhat slow to establish and slow to begin flowering after transplanting, potentially taking up to 7 years. Once established, it has no serious pest problems.
Compared to the species, this cultivar has silvery-grey leaves and large white flowers.
