Kudzu Culture is currently selling winter season, high-quality, chemical-free fresh kudzu roots @ $10/pound (+ shipping) ~ TO ORDER FRESH ROOT EMAIL KUDZUCULTURE@GMAIL.com www.kudzuculture.net
ASD Herb Hub is currently taking orders for winter season, high-quality, chemical-free dried kudzu roots @ $48/pound (+ shipping) ~ TO ORDER DRIED ROOT EMAIL KCOMMENDER@ASDEVELOP.org www.asdevelop.org
Greetings, ‘zu keepers! We’ve been harvesting, making, tending and planning next steps for Kudzu Culture. This summer we celebrated another successful Vine to Cloth Camp in Marshall, North Carolina, where we joined Fiberhouse Collective to weave kuzu-fu (kudzu cloth). We recently visited the Appalachian Herb Hub in Duffield, Virginia, where there is opportunity for scaling-up our root harvest and processing this winter. Stay tuned for more updates and root preorders (fresh and dried available throughout the wintertime).
Join us!
***Update due to weather***
*** Art On The Island is postponed until October 26 ***
Kudzu Culture will be at Art On The Island in Marshall, NC. Join us for a fabulous, fun and creative community event! Join us to learn all about kudzu, make-your-own kudzu fiber friendship bracelet, and taste kudzu blossom elixir.
Greetings, ‘zu keepers! We are getting in the weeds together this Spring with a variety of workshops, partnerships, research projects and more. A few upcoming events to note:
Stay tuned for more kudzu cultural news to come! We deeply appreciate financial support from the McClure Foundation for making our work possible. We also appreciate all the volunteers, collaborators and fellow ‘zu keepers who make this work so inspiring. Thank y’all! (- LB)
Greetings! As kudzu’s foliage goes into dormancy, we are gearing up for a vibrant cold weather root harvest season. Late fall and winter are the best times to work on both kudzu removal and root harvesting. This is because old-growth root crowns and runner vines are more visible, and easily identified without being covered with abundance of foliage. Roots are the most potent during wintertime to use for medicinal and culinary applications, because while the aerial portions of the kudzu are resting, the roots become extra juicy and starchy.
If you are interested in learning how to harvest kudzu roots, LB hosts weekly trainings in Madison County on most Wednesdays. Email kudzuculture@gmail.com to learn how you too can be a horiko-san (root digger). We’ll also host a starch processing demonstration later this winter in Marshall, NC (details coming soon!).
We have some fun ‘n free community events coming up in November and December:
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Kudzu & River Cane Workshop With RiverLink
Join RiverLink and Kudzu Culture for a hands-on workshop where participants will learn how to protect river cane, harvest kudzu, and make a kudzu vine wreath to take home! Please complete this form to RSVP (maximum of 15 participants for this workshop). Register here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdijd-1EUc8ALp_cwjLbjMWqw6Vo5jvdH_BWRaj6GMPypDWJA/viewform?pli=1
Details
When: 10am-1pm, Saturday Nov. 18, 2023
Where: We will meet at the RiverLink office (address is: 170 Lyman st., Asheville NC 28801).
What: A classroom presentation on kudzu and its uses will be held at the RiverLink office, followed by a hands-on portion where participants will be harvesting kudzu and learning how to make kudzu wreaths.
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Reed Creek Greenway Community Through Kudzu Series 2023
Saturday, December 9, 10am – 1pm
Kudzu Culture, Urban Forest Alliance, and Montford Neighborhood Association invite neighbors and friends to join in kudzu removal initiatives along the Reed Creek Greenway in Asheville, NC.
The final workshop of 2023 is “Root Crown Removal”
Learn to identify kudzu root crowns and vines when the leaves are dormant; remove old-growth root crowns and harvest runner vines for basketry, woven fencing, and wreath making.
Gather at the Reed Creek Greenway at corner of Cauble and Broadway St. in the Montford Neighborhood of Asheville, 10am – 1pm, Saturday, December 9. No registration required, just stop by! Wear warm clothing, gloves, and bring hand pruners and digging tools if you have them (tools also provided).
Please visit http://www.kudzuculture.net for additional information. Email kudzuculture@gmail.com with any questions. Donations of any amount are welcome to support this project!
Happy Equinox to all! We’re transitioning into fall with some fun and collaborative educational events. Here’s what’s coming up!
Saturday, September 23, 10am – 5pm ~ Marshall, NC ~ Join Kudzu Culture and Friends at Art on the Island in Marshall, NC. We’ll be sharing information about kudzu and demonstrating along with Fiberhouse Collective how to make kuzufu (kudzu cloth) from kudzu vines. Come say hi and make a kudzu friendship bracelet! There will be lots of unique art and activities, including natural dye station. See y’all there!
More information:
Saturday, Sept. 30, 10am – 6pm ~ Claryville, TN ~ Join Kudzu Culture at the Louie Bluie Festival, where we’ll be sharing and gathering stories about kudzu and how people in the region have learned how to collaborate with kudzu to make food, fiber and medicine. Hands-on activities include kudzu friendship bracelet making and kudzu vine wreath making. Louie Bluie Festival is hosted by Campbell Culture Coalition whose mission is to enhance the artistic and cultural opportunities of the citizenry, preserve the culturally significant past, and support the artistic and cultural talents of our youth who are our future.
More information:
Additional upcoming events:
– Saturday, Oct. 28 ~ Asheville, NC ~ Trial to Table with Utopian Seed Project
– Saturday, Nov. 11 ~ Asheville, NC ~ “Making the Mulch of Kudzu” Community Through Kudzu with Urban Forest Alliance, Montford Neighborhood Association, City of Asheville, UNCA, and Botanical Gardens at Asheville
– Saturday, Nov. 18 ~ Asheville, NC ~ Kudzu Vine Wreath Making with Riverlink
Email kudzuculture@gmail.com for additional information, and stay tuned here for more updates soon!
Greetings, Kudzu Cultural Ambassadors! The time is ripe for picking kudzu blossoms at lower elevations, and early buds are emerging in the mountains of our home in Western North Carolina. Kudzu Culture is hosting two upcoming blossom events, and we encourage folks throughout the South to harvest, create, and share ~ tea, syrup, jelly, and other unique treats.
Why is it ecologically beneficial to harvest kudzu blossoms? Because the blossoms develop into seed pods! So not only are we harvesting delicious and fragrant buds, we are also preventing vectors of spread via seed. People are the crucial animal predator of kudzu!
For some more kudzu blossom creative inspiration, checkout Carolina Kudzu Crazy, founded by Daryl Wilson the Kudzu Jelly Man, who makes all sorts of kudzu blossom syrup, jelly, sauce, and tea: https://www.facebook.com/p/Carolina-Kudzu-Crazy-100063473593361/
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Upcoming Kudzu Blossom Harvest Events:
Kudzu Blossom Harvest and Jelly Making Gathering – CLAIRFIELD, TN
Saturday, August 12, 2023
10am – 1pm
Location:
Clearfork Community Institute
170 Y Hollow Rd, Clairfield, TN 37715, USA
Description:
Join Kudzu Culture, Woodland Community Land Trust and friends to learn how to identify and harvest kudzu blossoms. Together we will rinse and sort blossoms, and make jelly for use at future Woodland Community Land Trust events! We will also be available to answer questions about kudzu in general, and discuss kudzu fiber and root harvesting initiatives in Clairfield and surrounding communities.
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Community Through Kudzu: Kudzu Blossom Harvest – ASHEVILLE, NC
Saturday, August 19, 2023
10am – 1pm
Location:
The Botanical Gardens at Asheville (classroom and partly outside)
151 WT Weaver Blvd, Asheville, NC 28804
Description:
Join Kudzu Culture, Urban Forest Alliance, Montford Neighborhood Association, and the Botanical Gardens at Asheville for the summer installment of Community Through Kudzu! During this workshop we will learn about how to identify and harvest kudzu blossoms, and taste kudzu blossom tea. Participants are encouraged to spread their knowledge with friends and neighbors, and harvest kudzu blossoms along the Reed Creek Greenway, to prevent seedpod development and spread.
All About Kudzu!
Saturday June 10, 2023
10am – 3pm
Join Kudzu Culture and Woodland Community Land Trust to learn all about the
history and uses of kudzu. In this workshop, you will learn about why kudzu was
planted and how you can harvest and use kudzu for material, fiber, fodder,
cooking starch, medicine, and more. This workshop includes an indoor
presentation, lunch, and outdoor hands-on activities.
Location:
Clearfork Community Institute; 170 Y Hollow Rd, Clairfield, TN 37715
Email wclt1977@gmail.com or call 423-784-5304 to register.
Schedule:
Kudzu Culture, Urban Forest Alliance, and Montford Neighborhood Association invite neighbors and friends to join in kudzu removal initiatives along the Reed Creek Greenway.
The second workshop of 2023 is “Spring Ephemerals and Kudzu Ecology”
The mile-a-minute vine is not the creeping green monoculture it might appear to be. Join us as we pull back the green curtain and see what plant and other creatures are adapting to life with kudzu. We’ll take a close look at the emergent ecology at the Reed Creek Greenway, identifying plants and discussing their role in the ecosystem. We’ll also examine some ways we two-legged inhabitants can play a beneficial role through mindful removal and use of kudzu.
Participants will come away from this workshop with a greater understanding of kudzu and other plant life and how they interact, as well as technical knowledge of how to remove kudzu and use the material for food and craft.
Gather at the Reed Creek Greenway at corner of Cauble and Broadway St. in the Montford Neighborhood of Asheville, 1-4pm, Saturday, April 29. No registration required, just stop by.
This workshop is funded by support from Urban Forest Alliance and Montford Neighborhood Association. Individual contributions are also welcome!
Please visit http://www.kudzuculture.net for additional information. Email kudzuculture@gmail.com with any questions.
Curious about kudzu? Join Kudzu Culture and Cooperate WNC on December 1, from 3 – 7pm, at The Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center in Mills River, North Carolina, for the inaugural Kudzu Culture Fair. Participants are invited to attend a Root Harvest Training from 3:30 – 5pm in the auditorium, followed by a Kudzu Craft and Products Fair from 5 – 7pm, featuring regional art, craft, and culinary and herbal products made from kudzu.
Horiko-San (堀り子さん) is what kudzu root diggers are called in Japan. Often these diggers are farmers who wild-harvest kudzu roots during the cold season as a supplement to their farming. Here in Western North Carolina we have a legacy of herbal root digging and we have an opportunity to aggregate high-quality kudzu roots for cooperate processing. We hope to see you on December 1 to learn and share all things kudzu, including how to be a Horiko-San! Together we will discuss the need for cooperative kudzu harvesting, aggregation and processing in order to strengthen a regional kudzu supply chain.
If you are interested in volunteering or vending please email kudzuculture@gmail.com or call Kudzu Culture at 828-280-7874. Volunteer roles for December 1 include helping with setup, vendor load-in, and cleanup.
Greetings, Ambassadors of Kudzu Culture!
The air is crisp and the waters are cool here in Western North Carolina! We’ve had a fun and busy summer full of collaborations and cooperative research and education. Here are a few updates and upcoming events.
In appreciation,
Lauren “LB” Bacchus
Co-Founder | Executive Director
Vine-to-Cloth Camp 2022
We were joined in August by a fabulous group of curious campers for Kudzu Vine-to-Cloth Camp in Marshall, NC. Together with Fiberhouse Collective and our Invasive Plant Fiber Study Group cohort we wove healing kuzu-fu (kudzu cloth) from hand-harvested and processed kudzu vine bast fiber. Special thanks to Nica of Fiberhouse Collective for cohosting, and to all of the generous contributions of camp participants. We are collaborating with the abundance! Stay tuned for explorations into industrially spun kudzu yarn and blending with other abundant plant fibers.
Community Through Kudzu with RiverLink
We had a wonderful time last week with RiverLink at Azalea Park in Asheville, NC. This is a site where kudzu is being eradicated, while we are simultaneously educating the public about how humans are important predators of kudzu! There are many ways we can responsibly collaborate with kudzu through harvest, use, and consumption. In this workshop we learned about uses for vines, roots, leaves, and blossoms. Pictured is kudzu blossom Vine-Aid, made with kudzu blossom simple syrup.
Now is the time to harvest kudzu blossoms! It’s important to harvest kudzu blossoms to prevent spread, because the blossoms become seed pods.
Upcoming Events
Join Us for Kudzu Crafts, Demos, and Product Debuts!
What: The Mountain Makers, Mushrooms, and Music Festival
When: Saturday, September 3, 2022, 11am – 6pm
Where: Downtown Sylva, North Carolina
What: Art on the Island
When: Saturday, September 24, 2022, 10am – 5pm
Where: Blannahassett Island, Marshall, North Carolina
What: Kudzu Farmer + Harvester Training and Kudzu Products Fair
When: Thursday, December 1, 2022
Where: Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center, Mills River, North Carolina
Call for Volunteers and Donations
Kudzu Culture was founded from an over decade-long research and education initiative between Justin Holt, Zev Friedman, Lauren “LB” Bacchus, and many coconspirators and collaborators. LB currently serves as the Executive Director and sole employee, as our Board of Directors works on developing a cooperative model. If you would like to further support our work, please consider volunteering or making a tax-deductible donation. Volunteers can be local to Western NC for in-person events, or can volunteer virtually by working on research, grant writing, data management, and/or educational material development.
Other donations needed: sturdy work truck, enclosed trailer, UTV, all-terrain hand carts, digging tools, cutting tools, gloves, food-grade buckets/vessels, tarps, warehouse space in Buncombe County or Madison County, North Carolina
Donations are tax-deductible. Please email LB at kudzuculture@gmail.com or call 828-280-7874 with inquiries and to coordinate donations.
Kudzu Culture 