There are two types of wisteria in Japan: Nodafuji and Yamafuji. When we simply say “fuji,” it usually refers to Nodafuji. In kanji, it is written as 野田藤 (Noda-fuji), which is named after a place called Noda in the Fukushima Ward of Osaka City. In ancient times, except for the current Uemachi Plateau, most of the Osaka Plain was covered by the sea. The wild species of Nodafuji drifted to the area and its beauty gradually became known. It is said that about 600 years ago, Ashikaga Yoshitaka, the second shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate, wrote a famous poem about it, and the name “Noda” became well-known nationwide. Later, Toyotomi Hideyoshi visited the area as a spectator, and “Yoshino cherry blossoms, Noda wisteria, and Koyo autumn leaves” became known as the three major sights. During the wisteria season, many visitors come to see the Nodafuji. Even now, “Nodafuji” is scattered around Osaka City, mainly in the Fukushima Ward, and is known as one of the “three major wisteria spots in Japan,” along with “Ushijima no Fuji” in Kasukabe City, Saitama Prefecture, and “Kasugano no Fuji” in Kasuga Taisha, Nara Prefecture. Among them, in Izumi City, southern Osaka, there is a magnificent wisteria trellis that exceeds 30 meters in width and 27 meters in depth, blooming from a single tree over 40 years old. This town, which prospered as the Shindachi-juku on the Kumano Kaido road in the past, is now visited by many flower viewers. By the way, the back of the 5,000 yen bill to be issued in 2024 will feature the flower of the wisteria.

フジにはノダフジとヤマフジがあります。どちらも日本原産で、単にフジと言う時にはノダフジを指します。漢字で書けば野田藤で、野田は大阪市の福島区にある地名です。昔、大阪平野は今の上町台地を除いてほとんどが海でした。そこに流れ着いたのがノダフジの原種です。その花の美しさは次第に知られる様になり、今から約600年前、室町幕府二代将軍・足利義詮（よしあきら）が詠んだ歌が有名で野田の地名が全国的なものになったと言われています。その後、豊臣秀吉も見物に訪れるなど、「吉野の桜・野田の藤・高雄の紅葉」は三大名所と言われ、藤の季節には訪れる人が絶えなくなりました。今でもなお、「野田の藤」は「牛島の藤」（埼玉県春日部市）・「春日野の藤」（奈良春日大社）と並び「日本の三大名藤」の一つとして福島区を中心に大阪に点在しています。中でも、大阪南部の泉南市には、樹齢40年を超えるたった一本の木から幅30m、奥行27mを超える見事な藤棚に咲くノダフジがあります。往時、熊野街道の信達宿として栄えたこの町には今多くの花見客が訪れています。ちなみに、2024年に発行される五千円札の裏にはフジの花が採用されています。