Wisteria - Wisteria (Fabaceae or Leguminosae) ------Wisteria is known as an architecturally useful, Twigs showy, woody vine that is cherished for its extremely -twining stems are light green, becoming light brown fragrant, pendulous spring blossoms that are often at maturity and twisting around their supportive blue-purple in color. structure as well as around themselves Trunk FEATURES -single-trunked and branching very low, light brown Form to light gray, either remaining smooth or becoming -medium-sized climbing woody vine muscled with age, often twisting upon itself or other -maturing at 30' long or more, depending upon adjoining branches, to the point of self-girdling or cultural pruning and the size of its supportive self-fusing structure -the vine can be pruned and supported at an early age -upright twining vine growth habit into tree form status, but this requires much annual -very rapid growth rate (once established) maintenance to keep an attractive and semi-formal Culture appearance -full sun to partial shade -performs best in full sun, in climates with abundant USAGE heat and high humidity, in moist, well-drained, deep Function soils of average fertility, but is adaptable to poor -climbing woody vine, supported by a trellis, fence, soils, soils of various pH, and drought arbor, or tree, and prized for its large, pendulous, -propagated by rooted stem cuttings or seeds, with showy, and extremely fragrant spring inflorescences cultivars either grafted onto seedling rootstock or Texture progated from rooted stem cuttings -medium texture in foliage and bold when bare -Pea Family, with several minor disease and pest -thick density in foliage and medium when bare problems that usually are of no serious consequence Assets -moderately available as a staked vine in containers -extremely fragrant spring flowers (often in full -often slow to establish during its first 1-2 yrs. of bloom before the foliage has emerged) growth, but grows very rapidly thereafter (up to 10' -vigorously and rapidly growing vine (once per year under optimum conditions, and sometimes established) more if pruned back hard on an annual basis) Liabilities Foliage -often does not flower until 5-10 yrs. after being -bronzed new foliage rapidly becomes medium green, transplanted composed of odd-pinnately compound leaves that are -the extremely vigorous and aggressive new growth alternate along the stems on established vines may need to be pruned back at -leaves are about 1' long and have about 15 leaflets least once a year, for containment in restricted growth per leaf, with the leaflets being ovate, acuminate, and areas or to maintain some degree of formality about 2" long each -the twining and heavy foliage-laden branches can -autumn color is poor, being light green or yellowish actually strangle and weight down trees or large green at abscission shrubs if the latter are used as supportive structures Flowers -poor autumn color -shades of blue, -dieback of the wispy terminal stems in most winters purple, violet, red- Habitat violet, lavender, or -Zones 4 (or 5) to 9, performing much better in hot white, depending and humid climates upon species and -Native to Japan, China, or the U.S., depending upon cultivar species -mid-May, 8-15" long pendulous SELECTIONS inflorescences Alternates occur before, -perennial vines with showy inflorescences (Campsis during, or after radicans, Clematis, Hydrangea anomala ssp. foliage emergence petiolaris, etc.) (but before foliage -perennial vines that, when mature, cast a dense is fully expanded), shade under supportive structures (Actinidia, Akebia are extremely fragrant, are either sparsely to densely quinata, Aristolochia durior, Parthenocissus laden (depending upon vine maturity and cultural quinquefolia, Parthenocissus tricuspidata, Vitis, etc.) pruning), and are quite showy on mature vines Cultivars - Variants - Related species -does not flower heavily (if at all) on young vines, or -2 landscape Wisteria are common: on mature vines that have been overfertilized with Wisteria floribunda - Japanese Wisteria - flowers high nitrogen or are in high fertility soils open over several days from the base to apex of each -flowering occurs on the short lateral shoots, inflorescence (remember that the apex is nearest to primarily from the previous season's growth (i.e., old the ground on the hanging infloresences), stems wood), but occasionally from the new growth as well twine clockwise (i.e., from bottom left to upper right Fruits on a cane pole), zone 4 hardiness, with many -5" long pods are noticeable but ornamentally cultivars of various floral color and inflorescence insignificant length (from 1-3') -pods are light green becoming brown, with each Wisteria sinensis - Chinese Wisteria - flowers open yielding a few seeds at about the same time along the inflorescence, stems twine counterclockwise, zone 5 hardiness, with few cultivars