A deciduous climber allied to A. megalophylla; leaves pinnate, up to 1 ft in length. Leaflets five or seven, oval or oblong, 11⁄2 to 41⁄2 in. long, 3⁄4 to 2 in. wide; rounded or broadly tapered at the base, terminating in a long, slender point; sparsely toothed, lustrous green above, claret purple beneath, and, like the young shoots, perfectly smooth.
This vine was discovered in Western Hupeh, China, by Wilson and introduced in 1900. It was distributed by Messrs Veitch from the Coombe Wood nursery erroneously as “V. leeoides”, and appeared as such in early editions of this work where, however, it was suggested that it might prove to be a new species. It differs from the true A. leeoides by its leaves being simply pinnate, never bipinnate. It does not seem to be very vigorous grown in an exposed position, but was very handsome trained up a pole in the Coombe Wood nursery. It succeeds well when grown on a south wall.
The true A. leeoides (Maxim.) Planch., a native of Japan and Formosa, is probably not in cultivation.