Wisteria - Growing and Pruning Wisteria Plants

With their perfumed flowers Wisteria are a favorite old fashioned climbing plant or vine that have been popular in Australia for many years . A woody climbing vine originally from China, Asia and the USA readily available for sale online in Australia. A long lived and much loved climber, in fact in many areas of Australia the heavily scented lilac pulple or white flowers of the wisteria have come to represent spring.

Wisteria Floribunda 'alba' pictured right will reach around 9m wit a spread of 5-6m if left unpruned and trained.

Species and cultivars abound with Wisteria floribunda 'nishiki', Wisteria Sinensis 'Blue Pacific' and Wisteria Macrostachya 'clara mack', the pale blue Wisteria Floribunda Lawrence along with Wisteria floribunda carnea as favorites. The main species include : W. Sinensis, W. Floribunda, W. Brachybotrys, and W. Macrostachya.

Growing Wisteria Vines

Growing and pruning Wisteria is fairly simple, they prefer a sunny position and a humus rich well drained soil. A cool root run is essential for growing wisteria, so mulch well or plant where the roots are in shade and the growing part of the plant reaches up to the sun.

Do not allow wisteria to grow around verandah posts, other house structures or other plants, they are tough and will do damage. Train wisteria to grow on wires instead.

Try something different, espalier a wisteria along wires on a fence, try standardising a wisteria, they make a very interesting weeping plant.

Pruning Wisteria

Wisteria flower before the foliage forms. Generally prune just after flowering before all of the new foliage develops. Remove long shoots, and prune back to 3-4 leaf nodes from the larger growing stems. Remember that these plants can be pruned as a standard or tree form as well as left to grow as a vine or climbing wisteria that we know so well.