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Stages of wisteria growth


How to Grow Wisteria | Garden Design

A gardener’s guide to planting & caring for a wisteria vine By Anne Balogh

Brimming with clusters of fragrant flowers in spring, the showstopping wisteria vine is loved by many gardeners despite its assertive reputation. An extremely vigorous grower, this perennial can get out of hand easily unless carefully restrained. Here are some tips for cultivating all wisteria has to offer while taming its aggressive growth habits.

To see other flowering vine options, check out our list of 21 Flowering Vines.

TRAINING WISTERIA: TRELLISES, PERGOLAS & OTHER SUPPORT STRUCTURES

Wisteria requires a sturdy support structure, such as this well-built pergola.

With its climbing agility and fast growth habits, wisteria can completely transform a garden in just a few years, becoming a breathtaking shade cover, privacy screen, or focal point. Wisteria has the greatest impact when trained to grow on pergolas, arbors, and other strong overhanging supports so the long flower clusters can hang freely, creating a stunning floral canopy. In Japan, wisteria is even trained onto massive trellises to form blooming tunnels in spring. You can also train wisteria onto wires mounted on fences or stone walls or drape them over garden benches or arched entryways.

Although you may be tempted to let wisteria twine around the trunk of a tree, its vice-like grip will eventually strangle it. To achieve a similar effect, you can train wisteria as a single-trunk, free-standing tree by staking the thick woody stem of the plant to a sturdy post or 4-by-4 embedded securely in the ground. As the plant grows, remove all unwanted growth along the trunk, allowing only the top to grow. Using the same techniques on a smaller scale, wisteria can be grown in large pots or as a bonsai tree.

Whatever trellising method you use, make sure the system is sturdy. Wisterias will readily topple weak wooden trellises, so use durable materials such as heavy metal pipe set in concrete or pressure-treated or rot-resistant wood beams. Also avoid growing the vines alongside your house, because they can creep under siding and wrap around gutters.

Keep in mind that once wisteria becomes well-established, it can be very difficult if not impossible to move later. Choose your planting location and design intent carefully, because you may not be able to change your mind later.

HOW TO GET YOUR WISTERIA TO BLOOM

Be patient, a newly planted wisteria may take several years to mature before it begins flowering.

Gardeners are often devastated when their wisteria fails to bloom the first season after planting. With young plants, be patient. Wisteria takes several years to mature and become established before it begins flowering with gusto. However, a lack of flowering can also be attributed to other factors, such as too much fertilizer, improper pruning, injury to the flower buds by frost exposure, or too much shade. Here are some tips from Toronto Master Gardeners for guaranteeing a profusion of blooms:

Here are some of the most popular wisteria cultivars:

Swipe to view slides

Photo by: Müller/ McPhoto / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria floribunda ‘Rosea'

Soft pink 13- to 16-inch flower clusters tinged with lavender. Grows more slowly than other cultivars (2 to 3 feet per year), making it a good choice for smaller gardens.

Zones: 5-9

Photo by: Garden World Images Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria floribunda ‘Snow Showers’

Pure white, pea-like flowers give the impression of snow falling in springtime. Very fragrant.

Zones: 5-9

Photo by: nnattalli / Shutterstock.

Wisteria floribunda 'Longissima Alba'

Very fragrant white wisteria with dense flower clusters up to 20 inches long.

Zones: 4-9

Photo by: Tim Gainey / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria floribunda 'Royal Purple'

Very fragrant white wisteria with dense flower clusters up to 20 inches long.

Zones: 4-9

Photo by: Garden World Images Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria floribunda 'Violacea Plena'

Showy blue-violet double flowers that fade to pale lavender.

Zones: 5-9

Photo by: InfoFlowersPlants / Shutterstock.

Wisteria sinensis 'Alba'

Short clusters of fragrant, pure white, pea-like flowers.

Zones: 5-8

Photo by: Wiert Nieuman / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria sinensis 'Prolific'

Noted for its prolific clusters of lilac-blue flowers. Typically begins blooming at an earlier age than other cultivars.

Zones: 5-8

Photo by: Garden World Images Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria frutescens 'Amethyst Falls'

Blooms at an early age, often its first season, with lightly fragrant lilac-blue flowers. Blooms also arrive about two weeks later than other varieties, so the buds are rarely affected by a late frost.

Zones: 5-9

Photo by: Carl Boro / Millette Photomedia.

Wisteria frutescens 'Longwood Purple'

This American wisteria flowers later than Asian varieties, but can repeat bloom through September. Offers a remarkable display of grape-like flower clusters.

Zones: 5-9

Photo by: Jennifer Martin-Atkins / Millette Photomedia.

Wisteria macrostachya 'Aunt Dee'

Abundant 8- to 12-inch-long clusters of fragrant lilac-blue flowers on new growth. Blooms at an early age.

Zones: 4-9

Photo by: blickwinkel / Alamy Stock Photo.

Wisteria macrostachya ‘Blue Moon'

Produces foot-long clusters of lavender-blue flowers in spring, with repeat blooming throughout the growing season once established.

Zones: 3-9

Photo by: Paul S Drobot / Millette Photomedia.

Wisteria macrostachya 'Clara Mack'

A pure white flowering form of Kentucky wisteria with dark green foliage.

Zones: 3-9

Not pictured:

Wisteria floribunda 'Lawrence'
Pale violet-blue flowers. The 12- to-18-inch clusters are loaded with as many as 160 blooms, more than all other Japanese wisteria.
Zones: 5-9

Wisteria frutescens 'Nivea'
Densely packed white flower clusters only 6 inches long, creating a pinecone-like shape.
Zones: 5-9

WHERE TO BUY WISTERIA

American Meadows
Brushwood Nursery
Digging Dog Nursery
Fast Growing Trees Nursery
Monrovia
Nature Hills Nursery
Spring Hill Nurseries
Thompson & Morgan
Wayside Gardens
Wilson Bros Gardens

WISTERIA Q&A

How large can wisteria get?

Wisteria vines can grow to epic proportions, spreading 100 feet or more under ideal growing conditions. The world’s largest known wisteria, located in Sierra Madre, Calif., was planted in 1894 and covers more than one acre.

Why does wisteria make loud popping noises?

Wisteria is a member of the pea family (Fabaceae), and similar to sweet pea vines, it produces long (but poisonous) seedpods after the flowers fade. When the pods ripen and turn brown, they explode with enough force to eject the seeds far away from the parent plant. This is Mother Nature’s way of preventing the overcrowding of seedlings, so they can germinate and grow without competition.

How long will wisteria live?

Planting wisteria is a long-term commitment. If you put a plant in the ground now, it may still be blooming and growing a century later if left undisturbed. One of the oldest wisteria vines, located in Japan’s Ashikaga Flower Park, dates back to 1870.

READER QUESTIONS

Q: I love wisteria but am having a hard time with it here in Minnesota. It’s not making much progress up my wooden arbor. - James A. Reider, White Bear Lake, Minn.

A: Your wisteria is root-hardy, but all the top growth it puts on each year is killed by severe winter temperatures. No wonder it’s not getting anywhere on your arbor. The two most common wisterias are W. sinensis and W. floribunda; the latter is a bit hardier. Its flower clusters are longer and more fragrant, but if your plant has never flowered, the best way to tell which one you have is the manner in which it twines: clockwise for W. floribunda, counterclockwise for W. sinensis. If you find you are growing the less hardy species, you might give W. floribunda a whirl, or even better yet, the native W. macrostachya. You might also consider wrapping the new growth in burlap for a little extra protection. If swaddling it is out of the question, you may have to settle on another vine. Incidentally, I hope your arbor is made of strong, thick timber: wisteria’s anacondalike stems have brought down many a finely wrought Victorian porch and gazebo.     

Americans seem to have a strong distrust of vines; we grow them much less than other garden plants. It probably comes from a Freudian hang-up about lush, twining, probing shoots and tendrils or, more likely, our fear of the self-important, strangling imported thugs we see taking over in nature - porcelain berry, Hall’s honeysuckle, and kudzu. I’d like to see increased use of vines and more imaginative ways of growing them. Why not plant different vines at the base of your arbor and let them fight it out? You’ll have more interesting foliage shapes and textures and more flowers over a longer period of time. And, should some prove not as hardy or as vigorous as others, you won’t be left with a bare arbor. Why not be Darwinian and let the tough Minnesota winters weed out the weaklings?      

Try trumpet creeper — the plain red species (Campsis radicans), not the named varieties that are less hardy — for its deep-green foliage and wonderful junglelike red flowers in late summer. It’s vigorous and can climb up a wooden arbor unassisted. Native Dutchman’s pipe (Aristolochia macrophylla) is a gamble in hardiness, but give it a try. It’s rambunctious and casts a deep shade with its large, tropical-looking leaves. A hardy, fast-growing native whose foliage turns scarlet in the fall is Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia).

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20 Fragrant Flowering Plants

Alan Titchmarsh: A foolproof guide to growing wisteria

Alan Titchmarsh gives advice for growing this most glorious of horticultural spectacles.

There’s a lot to be said for a slow start to spring. Yes, it’s frustrating to wait so long for floral joys after a cold, wet and snowy winter, when army-blanket skies were the order of the day, week after week, month after month.

However, late springs reduce the risk of premature growth that can often be severely burned by late frosts. Last year, a friend’s wisteria, which had put on a spectacular annual display for half a century, was dripping with sad, grey flower trails in April, the result of unexpected freezing temperatures at the end of the month.

This year, they have high hopes of the sort of spectacle their house has become renowned for, as the buds didn’t even start to break until the middle of April.

How I love wisteria! It graced the front wall of our modest three-up, three-down terrace house when we got married and I trained it proudly so that, in the six years we lived there, its territory was extended year on year.

It was the common Chinese wisteria (W. sinensis), generally the only kind that existed in our gardens for many years. Today, there are countless cultivars, mainly of Japanese origin, with strange names and, in some cases, strange colours and flower formations.

Wisteria tunnel in full bloom at Kawachi Fujien Wisteria Garden in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan

If you’re planting a new one, first check that you like the colour and flower form and buy a grafted plant, as it will bloom more reliably and at a much younger age. The graft union will be clearly visible a few inches above soil level. Plants that aren’t grafted and have been propagated by layering or cuttings can be irritatingly flower shy; there are ways to encourage blooming in older reluctant plants.

Wisteria needs a sunny wall. Don’t waste your time giving it a wall facing north or east. South and west are the more favoured aspects, where the wood will ripen most effectively. Then there’s the twice-yearly pruning. In July, tie in all questing growths that are needed to extend the plant’s coverage, but shorten all others to about 1ft. In January, cut back all sideshoots to finger length. Do this every year and your plant should not disappoint.

Meltingly beautiful Lodge House in Smeeth, near Ashford, Kent, has a Georgian façade clad
in mature wisteria.

Your wall will need some kind of support framework, as wisteria is a twiner, with no sticky pads such as those on Virginia creeper or aerial roots on ivy. Stout horizontal wires fastened to sturdy vine eyes screwed into the wall at intervals of 18in give the most unobtrusive support.

A well-affixed trellis can be used, but the snaking stems can get behind it and, as they fatten over the years, they can prise it from the wall – regular untangling during winter pruning will reduce this risk.

Feeding your wisteria with a generous helping of rose fertiliser (rich in flower-promoting potassium and magnesium) every March will help to promote regular flowering and healthy growth. If your wisteria has been pruned and fed and grown on a sunny wall and still refuses to flower after three or four years, give it up as a bad job, haul it out and plant a grafted variety that will make up for lost time.

Gateway to paradise: the wisteria-clad entrance to Dunsborough Park at Ripley, Surrey

Of the many varieties available, I particularly favour the old favourite Macrobotrys, which has flower trails that can be about 2ft long. The white varieties are wonderfully classy and, in the right situation, can be as spectacular as those of lilac purple.

I would never shun the plain W. sinensis, the flower trails of which give off the most delectable scent in spring sunshine, especially if trained around a bedroom window that can be opened to let in the heady fragrance.

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Growing wisteria in pots and containers is seldom successful, as the plants are so greedy when it comes to food and water. If you lack a suitable house wall, you can grow wisteria as a free-standing ‘standard’ on a 5ft bare stem. It will need some support, but I remember massive free-standing specimens at Kew Gardens when I was a student there and, even then, they were a good century in age. They scrambled like boa constrictors over a rusted iron framework they’d all but demolished.

All we need now is the sort of sunny weather that was lacking earlier in the year so that we can savour the delights of late spring and early summer in the company of one of the plant world’s most spectacular members.

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    • Flowers GLICANIS (Greek Glicinia - Sweet) , or Wisteria , belong to the genus of the tree -growing plants, growing. subtropical areas and attracting attention with their fragrant, hanging purple inflorescences. The Latin name "Wisteria" was given to the wisteria flower in honor of Caspar Wistar, professor of anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania. Known 9species of the genus wisteria, but as horticultural crops, only Chinese wisteria and Japanese wisteria, or profusely flowering, are grown.

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    Planting and caring for wisteria

    Read more about the cultivation of wisteria below

    Botanical description

    The wisteria plant in nature is a woody deciduous vine with drooping branches, reaching 15-18 meters in height. The leaves of wisteria are imparipinnate, pubescent when young, up to 30 cm long, with the number of leaves from 7 to 13. Fragrant purple, lilac or white flowers are collected in drooping brushes up to 30 cm long. Wisteria blooms in spring, at the end of March and can bloom throughout the summer.

    The wisteria tree is in great demand in landscape design, it is grown in various forms - both as a liana wrapping around the walls of an arbor or a fence frame, and as a standard tree. Wisteria is also grown at home in a container way in the form of a tree, but still homemade wisteria is not as common as garden wisteria, so let's talk about growing wisteria in the garden.

    Growing wisteria from seeds

    Growing conditions

    Wisteria seeds are planted in late November or early December. Wisteria seeds are sown on the surface of a soil mixture consisting of leafy soil (four parts), soddy soil and sand (one part each), sprinkled with a thin layer of sand on top, sprayed with water from a spray bottle and, having covered the container with glass to create a greenhouse effect, put in a dark warm (22-25 ºС) place, keeping the soil slightly moist all the time. Wisteria sprouts from seeds in 3-4 weeks, and after another week and a half, it will be possible to transfer seedlings to the light by organizing protection from direct sunlight.

    When the seedlings have two leaves, they are dived into separate containers together with a clod of earth on the roots and watered with a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

    Care of seedlings

    Seedlings dived into individual containers must be accustomed to the environment in which they will live. To do this, they need to be taken out for a couple of hours a day to an unheated part of the house or kept under an ajar window, provided that there is no draft in the room.

    Wisteria seeds can be sown directly into open ground in early spring, then seedlings grow adapted to the environment and subsequently delight with their endurance.

    Planting wisteria

    When to plant

    Plant wisteria in the spring after the last frost has passed. All types of garden wisteria are cold-resistant, but it is better not to expose young plants to the risk of frostbite. Before planting wisteria, it is necessary to determine in which area it will grow better - wisteria is not an annual, and if you are interested in the quality of flowering, then keep in mind that it should be in the sun for half a day, so choose the most sunny and protected from gusts of wind, the soil is nutritious, well-drained and slightly alkaline.

    How to plant

    Wisteria seedlings are transplanted into pits 60x60x50 cm in size, having previously applied mineral fertilizers to the soil in the area for digging at the rate of 25-30 g per square meter of planting area. Be prepared for the fact that wisteria will not show signs of life for some time - it grows for a long time, and in the first years it forms only long thin shoots. In general, you can see beautiful flowers of wisteria grown from seeds only after 4-5, or even after 10 years.

    Care of wisteria in the garden

    Care instructions

    From spring to late summer, wisteria requires moderate watering so that the soil under it is always slightly moist, but never wet. If the spring is without rain, then you will have to water more diligently, because the buds may crumble, and you will not see the flowers for which the plant was planted. From mid-September, watering is gradually reduced.

    In order for wisteria to bloom on time and abundantly, it is fed once a week during the active growing season, alternating liquid mineral fertilizers (Kemira-lux, for example) with organic ones (mullein infusion in a ratio of 1:20). It is useful to pour wisteria with chalk water once a season (100 g of chalk per bucket of water). When the flowers begin to fade, remove the faded inflorescences. In addition, you will have to cut dry branches, tie up and guide the shoots so that they do not fall and grow in the right direction.

    Before the onset of winter, you need to spud the rosette high, remove the vine from the supports and lay it on the near-trunk circle, as is done with climbing roses, preparing them for wintering, and then sprinkle with dry leaves and cover with spunbond or lutrasil. You can not do all this, but if there is no snow in winter, the wisteria may freeze.

    Flowering

    When does wisteria bloom? Chinese wisteria blooms at the age of three, Japanese - at the age of ten, so wisteria is a plant for those who know how to wait. Chinese wisteria blooms from April, with all buds opening at the same time. Wisteria blooms profusely from May to June. Make sure that there is no excess nitrogen in the soil, otherwise the wisteria will grow green, but will not bloom.

    Pruning

    Pruning wisteria to stimulate flowering and to form the plant. To form a standard tree, one strong shoot is chosen, and the rest are removed. If you grow wisteria as a climbing plant, then it is advisable to remove the abundantly growing side shoots so that wisteria does not expend energy on overgrowing greens, but directs them to the formation of buds.

    Pruning wisteria in spring consists of removing young shoots sticking out so that their foliage does not hide flower clusters from view during flowering. In addition, a young lateral annual branch of wisteria can produce an inflorescence this year only if you shorten it to 30 cm.

    Formative pruning of the plant is carried out in summer: lateral shoots are cut off by 20-40 cm, and at the very end of summer by another 10-20 cm. However, try not to get carried away with the process, otherwise you may deprive yourself of the pleasure of seeing the lush flowering of wisteria.

    Propagation of wisteria

    We have already described in this article the propagation of wisteria by seed. It is worth adding that many of the germinated and even grown seedlings may never produce flowers - no one knows why this happens. But we have repeatedly told readers that propagation by seeds is unreliable and it is much better to use vegetative methods of reproduction.

    Wisteria is most easily propagated by layering. To do this, in the spring, an annual shoot is selected, an oblique incision is made in the middle of its length, the shoot is bent and placed with an incision on a pot with a clay-soddy substrate, the outlet is fixed in this position and added dropwise, leaving the top of the shoot free. It will be possible to separate the rooted cuttings from the mother plant only next spring.

    In various publications they write that it is possible to propagate wisteria by cuttings or grafting on the roots, but I don’t know anyone who actually succeeded in this, but my layering took root.

    Pests and diseases

    Wisteria is sometimes attacked by aphids or clover mites. Aphids are destroyed by an insecticide, and mites by an acaricidal preparation. If wisteria grows in alkaline soil, it can be affected by chlorosis, from which its leaves turn yellow. In the fight against the disease, root dressing of wisteria with iron salts is used.

    Species and varieties

    Chinese wisteria (Wisteria chinensis)

    Dense leafy liana up to 15-20 m in height. The leaves are pinnate, large, at first pubescent, but eventually becoming smooth. Flowers in loose racemes up to 30 cm long, light lilac. The fruit is a bean up to 15 cm long. This species has a garden form with white flowers (f. alba) and a form with double flowers (f. plena).

    Wisteria profusely flowering, or multi-flowered (Wisteria floribunda)

    It is also colloquially “Japanese”, because it comes from the Japanese islands - it differs from Chinese in smaller sizes (only 8-10 m in length), larger leaves up to 40 cm in length and the number of leaves up to 19, a large number of inflorescences on the plant, as well as their larger sizes - up to 50 cm in length. The flowers themselves are smaller than those of Chinese wisteria, of a violet-blue hue, bloom gradually, starting from the base of the brush. This species is more cold-resistant than Chinese wisteria. There are garden forms with white, pink, purple double flowers and a variegated form with variegated leaves.

    In addition to these two most popular species, there are also beautiful wisteria (Wisteria venusta), shrub wisteria (Wisteria frutescens) and large wisteria (Wisteria macrostachys) in cultivation, on the basis of which Blue Moon wisteria was bred by American gardeners from Minnesota, capable of wintering in the garden even without cover.

    Literature

    1. Read related topics on Wikipedia
    2. Peculiarities and other plants of the legume family
    3. List of all species on The Plant List
    4. More information on World Flora Online


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    Wisteria is the beauty of the south.

    Types, care, cultivation, reproduction. Photo — Botanichka

    Anyone who was lucky enough to see her during flowering will not forget wisteria until the end of her days. The lucky ones living in the southern regions - they can admire the flowering of wisteria in their own garden, and the inhabitants of the north, whose destiny is to wrap their houses around modest girlish grapes, secretly dream of a bright and lush southern woman in their garden. Wisteria is a thermophilic plant. In the Crimea, the Caucasus and Transcarpathia, it blooms very abundantly and for a long time. To the north, it blooms weaker and needs winter shelter.

    Wisteria profusely flowering. Ashikaga Flower Park, Ashikaga, Tochigi Province, Fr. Honshu, Japan. © TANAKA

    Description of wisteria

    Wisteria (from the Greek γλυκός - sweet), or wisteria (lat. Wisteria) - a genus of tall tree-like climbing subtropical plants from the legume family with large, odd-pinnate leaves, pubescent in youth, later - bare, showy light purple, less often white, flowers, in hanging, loose racemes up to 30 cm long. Blooming in spring, it retains individual flowering racemes throughout the summer. Widely used in landscape design.

    Wisteria is a common climbing plant that needs good conditions - fertile nutrient soil and full sun. Install strong supports, as wisteria grows strongly over time and covers a large area. Wisteria can be planted in front of the entrance to the house or on the terrace. Soon this magnificent plant will decorate the territory with its beautiful tassels of fragrant inflorescences.

    Wisteria can be planted near a pergola or garden arbor. With its help, you can drape bare walls. Liana blooms when there are no leaves on the branches yet. They appear already during flowering.

    Varieties of wisteria amaze with the splendor of numerous flowers collected in racemes that can reach up to 80 cm in length. Flowers bloom either simultaneously with the appearance of leaves, or a little earlier. Wisteria as a tub plant is grown to decorate south-facing balconies, where there is a lot of light and heat. With good care, the plants bloom profusely in spring and again in the second half of summer, but weaker.

    Wisteria profusely flowering, variety ‘Violacea Plena’. © Cliff

    Caring for Wisteria

    Moderate watering from spring to late summer, keeping the soil slightly damp at all times. The soil should be light and rich in nutrients. Chlorosis (lightening of the leaves) often develops on calcareous soils. Wisteria does not tolerate excess water well. In dry spring, plants should be well watered so that the buds do not crumble. During the period of budding and flowering, once a week they are fed with liquid fertilizer. For luxurious flowering, wisteria should be in the sun for at least half a day. They require shelter for the winter. But some varieties can withstand frosts down to -20 ° C.

    To increase the abundance of flowering wisteria should be cut at least 2 times. The first pruning is carried out after flowering, shortening all side shoots by two thirds of their length. The second is done in the fall after leaf fall. At the same time, the cut lateral branches in summer and those that appeared after summer pruning are shortened, leaving 3-5 buds on which inflorescences will appear.

    In central Russia, it requires good shelter for the winter.

    White wisteria. Seasinghurst Castle Garden, England. © OdI

    Growing wisteria

    Wisterias are not only grown outdoors. She feels good in pots and flowerpots in the form of a stem tree, which can be obtained with the help of proper pruning. In autumn, such plants are introduced into a room with a temperature of 8-10 degrees. At air humidity of 65-75% and bright lighting (2500-6500 lux). Water sparingly in winter. In March, young side shoots are cut to 2-3 good buds, forming a crown. In the summer they take it out into the open air and water it abundantly.

    For faster adaptation to a new place and rooting, it is better to purchase wisteria with a closed root system. When buying varietal seedlings, make sure they are vaccinated. Otherwise, the plant will bloom only after a few years and much less magnificently. Do not buy seedlings that are too small, as such plants will not bloom soon.

    Wisteria is a magnificent spring flowering plant that pleases the eye with lush blooms. It has attractive fragrant racemes that cascade down like a waterfall. At the foot of the wisteria, white tulips and daffodils, dark purple hyacinths or yellow daffodils and imperial hazel grouse (Fritillaria imperialis) look great.

    An unforgettable sight is the dark red tulips of Darwin hybrids growing at the foot of the liana. The fragrant bushes of the common wolfberry (Daphne mezereum), which also prefers sunny, warm places, are also ideally combined with wisteria.

    Wisteria Bonsai. © Cliff

    Propagation of wisteria

    Wisteria is propagated by layering in spring and summer, by seed in early spring.

    Many growers find the seed method too complicated. But patience and work will grind everything. Seeds are sown in greenhouses in winter (late November-early December) or in the ground in early spring (March). In greenhouses, seeds are sown in a well-drained substrate mixture of leafy, soddy soil and sand (4:1:1) over the surface and sprinkled with sand. Cover the crops with glass or transparent film and clean in a dark place. Make sure the soil doesn't dry out.

    Wisteria Chinese seeds germinate at a temperature of 20-25 degrees, only in complete darkness. The first shoots appear after 3-4 weeks. After 1-1.5 weeks, the seedlings are exposed to light, shading the first time from the sun. When 2 leaves appear, pikiroaka the plant with a clod of earth without disturbing the root system.

    For rooting of cuttings in the spring, a strong one-year-old shoot is selected and an oblique incision is made with a knife in the middle of its length. The incision site is placed in a pot with a substrate (nutrient clay-turf). The top of the shoot is strengthened by tying it to a support. At the end of summer, layering with a large number of roots is planted for its intended purpose.

    Cuttings are taken in March-April. Annual mature shoots 20-25 cm long are cut into cuttings. Rooted in soil from soddy soil, peat, humus and sand (3:1:1:1)

    Wisteria properties

    Leaves, have the most valuable antibiotic property; their volatile phytoncides inhibit the development of tubercle bacillus.

    Chinese Wisteria. © 3268zauber

    Types of wisteria

    Chinese wisteria - Wisteria chinensis

    Beautiful, densely leafy liana, originally from China, reaching a height of 15-20 m, with large, odd-pinnate leaves, pubescent in youth, later - naked, showy light purple, rarely white, flowers. In hanging, loose racemes up to 30 cm long. Blooming in spring, retains individual flowering brushes throughout the summer. The fruit is a densely pubescent bean up to 15 cm long.

    Very photophilous, demanding on the soil, prefers moist and deep fertile. It tolerates city conditions and short-term temperature drops to -20 ° С. It grows very quickly, twisting counterclockwise. Widely used in vertical gardening in the south of Russia.

    One of the most beautiful vines, very showy in the flowering period. It is also decorative with its beautiful graceful, feathery foliage, which takes on a golden yellow color in autumn. With systematic pruning, it can be grown in a tree-like, upright, standard form, used in single plantings on a lawn. Suitable for tub culture. In culture since 1816.

    Garden forms:

    Wisteria profusely flowering, or many-flowered - Wisteria floribunda

    Similar to the previous species, but differs from it in smaller sizes (8-10 m) and larger, complex leaves up to 40 cm, with the number of leaves in them up to 19. smaller sizes and greater density; a large number of flowers and inflorescence sizes up to 50 cm. The flowers are smaller, purple-blue. Blooms 2-3 weeks later. Blooming of flowers comes from the base of the brush gradually (in Chinese wisteria, blooming is almost simultaneous). The fruits remain on the plant throughout the winter. It grows in a clockwise direction.

    More frost-resistant (up to -23 degrees) and decorative than Chinese wisteria. It is widely used in vertical gardening, where it is valued for its abundance of beautiful leaves, colorful, profuse flowering and showy fruits. In culture since the beginning of the XIX century.

    Ornamental forms:

    Wisteria venusta

    Liana up to 10 m high. Hairy shoots. The leaves are compound, up to 10 cm long. Densely silky pubescent on both sides, especially below. The flowers are white, up to 2.5 cm long, collected in hanging racemes up to 15-20 cm long. It blooms in May-June. There are forms with double white flowers and with purple flowers.

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