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This week I am writing about the grand and fabulously floriferous Wisteria that grows on the side of the house where I live. I cannot call it my Wisteria, nor even really, my house, for they were both in existence long before I was born and will hopefully be here long after I am gone. I am merely their current guardian and have known and cared for them for the past 13 years.
When I first came to see the house with a view to buying it, I fell in love with the garden as much as the building and with it all came this truly splendid climber. My friend Darryl, a tree surgeon, reckons it is 70-100 years old and could be more – take a look at that trunk!
The house dates from 1840, so who knows, the wisteria could have been planted back then. I often think about all the people who have passed through this house and garden over the years and how they have probably stood, just where I do, looking up into the wisteria admiring its glorious trusses of flowers and breathing in its heady scent. What secrets this old lady could tell if only she could talk.
Anyone who plants a Wisteria should know they have to have patience: although once settled, the climber throws out shoots quickly and can put on several feet a year, it can be four to five years before it begins flowering and quite a while before there are flowers to the extent of these pictures, but if you plan to stay somewhere for a fair time, then it’s well worth it.
The display in spring before the leaves open is gorgeous and the Chinese Wisteria (W. sinensis), the one shown here, also has a lovely scent which drifts on the air on still days. I have it trained around the two aspects of my bedroom and on warm days, when the windows are open, the perfume is sublime. Once the flowers are over, the 12-16 inch long, pinnate leaves are a feature in themselves as they create an elegant, shady bower throughout the summer.
Wisteria is native to China, Japan and the Eastern United States and although all put on a splendid show, their flowers are quite different. The Japanese Wisteria have longer, finer flower trusses and cultivars come in white and pink as well as the more usual violet-blue.
The experts say it is important to choose a plant that has been grafted rather than grown from layered shoots or cuttings as these are less likely to be reliable at flowering. Check before you buy: you can see where the main stem has been grafted, an inch or two above soil level. Apparently, another way to identify which country a wisteria originates from, is to check which direction the vines are twisting round their support structure. If they turn anti-clockwise, it’s a Chinese Wisteria or one of the American varieties. Japanese Wisteria, it seems, always grows clockwise!
If you wish to grow a Wisteria successfully you will need a wall that faces south or west. The sun is important to “ripen” the wood and encourage flowering, thus the climber will never be happy or perform well facing north or east. You will also need to provide a strong supporting structure, ideally heavyweight horizontal wires through vine eyes. This will be robust enough to hold up the twining stems as they thicken up and get heavier. The stems and main trunk on the wisteria in my garden get larger every season and I realised a year or two ago that part of the main trunk was leaning against one of our kitchen windows. It was clear that, left to its own devices, the weight would eventually crack the glass. We had to take remedial action and hammer a couple of wooden wedges between the wall of the house and the trunk to lever it away from the window.
To get the best out of your Wisteria, ongoing maintenance is important. Feeding it in March, especially when it is young, will help promote flowering: Growmore or Fish, Blood and Bone, contain the right levels of potassium and magnesium as does rose or flowering-shrub fertiliser. I should say at this point I have never fed this one - I can’t get at the roots, but given its age I’m sure the huge root formation will be seeking out the nutrients it needs far underground. The correct pruning is also paramount, to prevent the climber from taking over and to get the best show of flowers. This needs to happen twice a year.
In July, any long shoots you want to use to increase the wall coverage of the vine should be tied in to your wires. The remainder of the whippy tendrils should be shortened to around 12 inches (five or six leaves). This gets difficult as the plant gets much bigger and you will need steps or a ladder to reach the highest points. I discovered when I moved here that the same man had been pruning this wisteria for years, so he knows it well and comes back twice a year to keep it in check.
When he arrives in July, there are often stems waving around on the roof of the house and encircling the chimney! They can also get behind guttering and under roof tiles so it is important to keep an eye on this vigorous climber. He returns in February to cut back all side shoots to around 3 inches.
If you examine the stems up close in winter when the stems are bare, you can tell the difference between the leaf buds - narrow, pointed and lying close to the stem and those that will flower as they are rounder and fatter. These must be left while the side shoots with just leaf buds can be cut off. This leaves you with clusters of stubby twigs all over the climber that will carry the flowers. There will usually be a second flush of flowers in July/August, much less showy than the first as the flowers are smaller, fewer and also hidden to some extent by the large leaves, but they are always welcome none-the-less.
The roots of Wisteria extend both down and across as the plant ages and there is a school of thought that it’s not a good idea to site the climber next to a house or a supporting wall lest they are undermined. I’m sure this is true but, in argument, I would ask, how many very old buildings do we see supporting a stout and aged Wisteria that doesn’t appear to have caused too many problems?
Granted, one never quite knows what is going on beneath the ground: in this garden the old brick paving that surrounds the base of the Wisteria is buckled and uneven where the roots are obviously pushing it out of place, so what it is doing to the walls of the house could be cause for worry - no doubt, we shall find out one day. In the meantime, I shall enjoy the impressive show this Wisteria puts on for the few weeks that it flowers every spring when it becomes one of the loveliest elements of my garden.
Note I am happy to call it “my garden”, for although the bare bones were here when I arrived, I have replanted much of it over the years and when I am no longer here, it will doubtless change again to suit the wants and needs of the new owners. Until then I shall happily call it mine.
It seems everyone loves Wisteria - even non-gardeners appreciate its stunning displays. Are you a fan? I’d love to hear your Wisteria tales. Leave a comment by tapping the button below
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Well if that rule is correct then yes, it must be Chinese. I’ve wondered if my community are able to share pictures too. I’m not sure. I can try and find out from the Substack team. I’ll get back to you when/if I get an answer.
Hello again, I’ve just checked… so our stems curl clockwise!! So must be Chinese?! Wonder if I can share a photo of them here?