I have a line of 20 Akebia (interspersed with 20 Honeysuckle) for a fence treatment, planted this spring. About two-thirds are on a slope, starting mild and ending moderate, plus there is full sun for the lower part and mixed shade in the upper part. I water very carefully, one plant at a time, dribbling until the rootball is saturated. The "rootballs" of the Akebias are tiny, like 2 inches (5cm) square, so they need water daily if no rain.. Extra water has not helped (nor hurt) the hurting Akebia. I don't know what type of Akebia, and they did not flower this first year (is that normal?). The Akebia under the shade are doing much better; leaves look nice and green, no damage, and lots of growth. The ones in the sun are more yellow-ey, some have brown spots, and they just don't grow as well. New growths are dying, for example, the last several inches of a new tendril dying). I increased the water, and that did not help, but it did spur more growth in the healthier shaded ones. There is no difference in the top soil along the fence. The picture below shows the new growth not happy. Note the new growth right in the center of the post, hanging strait down and purple-ish. Any advice?
Just as many plants are killed by too much water as not enough water. If they are in the ground you need to check the drainage to make sure they are not sitting in soggy soil, that will cause root rot and kill the plants. You could do what is recommended for container plants, instead of watering on a regular schedule, water when the soil at the base is dry down to about the second knuckle when you stick your finger in the soil. But the leaves of the Akebia quinata (Chocolate Vine) will turn brown as they age, only the young ones are green and that may be what yours are doing. You can look at a well established, flourishing vine and see sets of brown leaves scattered all over it. They bloom in mid-Spring so they probably were not in the ground long enough for the roots to settle in and produce blooms.
...And I cannot find a way to edit or delete a post. Yes, I have been checking the soil, and it is never saturated on the hill portion. The soil around it is on a slope, so it does drain. The entire property is on the upper slopes of an ancient river bed, so overall drainage is good, with the exception of some areas of clay, a layer of clay all around here, but jumbled, broken, and at variable height. The Akebia soil is not in or above a clay layer. The leaves that turn color also loose water tension, that is, they droop. If you look closely on the right edge of the support pole, along the bottom third of the picture, you see some leaves hanging down (as well as the leading edge of that vine), while the okay leaves are green and properly upright. I think this image reflects an entire vine branch dying. Other branches are dying or dead just on the end portions, sometimes back to a third of a meter. Does, when I increased the amount of water, the shaded Akebia started growing faster and sending off more new vine branches, suggest I was under watering them a little? BTW, the Honeysuckle were doing okay, but when I started using more water, they have now sent off growth and whole new sets of flowers. It really seems like the Akebia is sun-sensitive, but that is not what the literature, or others pictures, show.
