oldrebel: blog 
oldrebel's blog
kudzu in the night
Published Sep. 7, 2008
Most of my friends don't care to ride their bikes in the the evening hours. I actually ride about as much at night as I do during sunlit hours. Very little traffic, no distractions, solitiude. Well, there are some distractions. Such as that subtle delicate perfume from the kudzu bloom. The past few weeks I've enjoyed their bouquet in the evening hours and early mornings when I ride. It seems to settle in low spots when the landscape is covered with the "mile a minute" vine and is one of the few pleasant things you can say about the vine. Maybe even the only pleasant thing. LOL
Anyway, this is another one of those benefits from riding a bike. You're not insulated from the roadside with all it's attendant aromas as you are when riding in a car or truck, otherwise known as a "cage" to some bikers. On a bike you're part of the landscape. You are a focal point with the world rushing by you in all it's glory. People seem friendlier, the sun seems brighter and the nights are like a blanket of comfort...and when you add the blooms of the kudzu filling your nostrils as you ride through their abundance, it makes you feel glad to be alive and aware of everything.
Try and get out in the evening or early morning and find a place where the blooms are still in profussion. Breathe in their sweetness and see if it doesn't make you glad you made the effort to , "stop and smell the ..kudzu."
(BTW; Take time to check the link on Kudzu. It has info about Kudzu jellies, baskets made from Kudzu vines (an idea for handicrafts?) and some of the history of how the green monster got started here and it's origins. Fascinating reading.)
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GOLO member since August 16, 2007
September 8, 2008 8:47 a.m.
GOLO member since July 7, 2007
September 8, 2008 5:58 a.m.
GOLO member since October 11, 2007
September 7, 2008 11:45 p.m.
or you can make your own -- according to this site. (I'd cut my hand off with the pruning shears and pick up poison ivy -- knowing my luck.)
GOLO member since April 25, 2008
September 7, 2008 11:34 p.m.
There's some nice photos of one lady's baskets. Another woman makes paper with the kudzu. I was going to google some links to see how much the baskets cost.
GOLO member since April 25, 2008
September 7, 2008 11:30 p.m.
GOLO member since October 11, 2007
September 7, 2008 11:28 p.m.
GOLO member since April 25, 2008
September 7, 2008 11:15 p.m.
GOLO member since October 11, 2007
September 7, 2008 11:11 p.m.
GOLO member since September 1, 2007
September 7, 2008 11:03 p.m.
According to Old Rebel's link -- kudzu can be eaten. Someone else cut it and fed it to their cows. (cut low, bale high was his advice)
I'd always heard it was poisonous so the recipes surprised me.
GOLO member since April 25, 2008
September 7, 2008 10:58 p.m.
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