gardening

Gardening with Ciscoe ( www.ciscoe.com ) Gardening - Plants - NWCN Plant of the Week

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Wisteria

Wisteria floribunda 'Lipstick' (May 2, 2008)

Wisteria is one of the most beautiful flowering vines on earth, but it's also one of the most aggressive. All this vine needs is a sunny location and a strong support to thrive. These plants are a lot of work. I once saw a 3 story house pulled off its foundation by Wisteria. If you let it go unchecked, it'll rip your neighbors roof off while you aren't looking. I prune my wisteria four times a year, but most people only prune twice per year. I only allowed 4 tendrils to climb my structure (you have to tie them on to get them started) and no-more than 3 tendrils were allowed on each cross brace. Now that I've established a foundation of vines, right after the blooms fade and the tendrils begin to grow, I climb the ladder and cut the emerging tendrils to about 6 inches long from my structural vines. Those tendrils will grow 25 feet in one season and will get into a lot of mischief if you let them. Cutting them back puts all the energy that would have gone into 25 feet of growth into the 6 inch spur that remains. That initiates flower bud promotion supreme. My arbor is about 15 by 15 feet and I get over 1000 fragrant blooms every year! My Wisteria is a Japanese variety with longer flowers than the Chinese variety, but I love both types. Just remember that each variety twists a different direction. Never fight mama nature by trying to force the vines to twist in a direction other than the one in which they naturally grow: The vines will revert to their natural direction, uproot the trellis and tie you to it!