After battling with various non-native invasives all these years, and fighting to get natives re-established, I'd strongly suggest that anyone planning on planting potentially invasive plants please reconsider. Planting a non-native Wisteria is about as environmentally/biodiversity friendly as planting multiflora roses. In the long run, just about everyone, including the person who planted it, will likely regret that decision.

JMO,
Suja

Sounds like roses among your wisteria is what happens eventually.

This seems to have become a thread about Wisteria....
I have one in the front of my house and one in the rear of my house, both are about 1 foot from the house (planted about three years ago). I prune it twice a year, summer and winter as directed by some japanese gardening magazine (Roth Tien?). I also have three of them that are in pots that I plan to put in the ground around an arbor and a pergola later on. The flowering period last about 4-5 weeks because the different plants don't all flower at exactly the same time and they don't have the same sun exposure watering etc. The smell is intoxicating in the spring. I love this plant but you guys are scaring me. I know that it has to be maintained - My question is will I regret even though I am taking care of it?

{{gwi:318626}}

My experience as a kid was with the runners in the lawn. I was thunderstruck at how far the ran.

Well,

I know here in zone 4 we're a far far cry from all you warmer zone gardeners! I just wanted to share my experience with Blue Moon wisteria... in case the northern gardeners are lusting after all the gorgeous wisteria pics. This will be it's 2nd spring with me, and after last years very tame growth, I have to say godzila it isn't! I maybe got 2' of growth last year! I'm moving it closer to my house, since it isn't hardly gaining any growth, and would probably be happier in a more sheltered location. I was going for a wisteria standard... but ah no! It is a little slower to wake up in the spring, but it does survive the brutal winters admirably, while it's godzilla cousins can't take the cold. So if you are pining for wisteria, don't want a take over the house godzilla, or need something reasonably cold hardy, try this one! (Aunt Dee is another good one for us northereners!)

Never grew Wisteria in Roses but here in SC it grows wild everywhere.
If it gets out of hand I have my old standby "Roundup".
It works great for "Mamosa" as well.
Both of them at times require a double or triple dose to insure the death of the main root.

Omg!!! I just spent $100 on a 3 gallon Amethyst Fall Wisteria.. Im horrified with the comments above. I Called the nursery to cancel my order, but it has been shipped already earlier this morning. As soon as I receive the plant I will put it in the garbage can...i wont even open the box. Dont want risk of seeds falling down on my yard. Its so dangerous... How could I not research about this plant before buying it? Im so upset!!!

We have a bed where (knowledge from family history) a large wisteria was planted in the 1920s or 1930s. It got so big that the teenage son of the family (who eventually evolved into my FIL), when he was sneaking home from being out late, used to climb up the wisteria to get to the third floor screened "sleeping porch", where they kept beds for hot summer nights. By the time we moved in, that one had been replaced by what my FIL told me had to be rootstock, because it looked nothing like the original. It did bloom, but with wimpy flowers. The exploding seeds meant that I had wisteria weeds everywhere. We eventually decided to take it out. Ha! It got dug up, poisoned, etc. several times. Shoots of it are STILL coming up in that bed. So, the rootstock plant has been there 100 years...

Jackie

Amethyst falls wisteria is a non invasive wisteria so it could probably be contained. I have a wisteria Which I believe is amethyst falls and I grow it as a small standard and it does okay. It blooms in April-June and not too vigorous. I snap off the seed pods when I see them since it puts ok maybe a dozen flower clusters I have Roseville noisette near it and as well as hawainette daylilies and small perennials/annuals and haven't had problems.

The thuggish wisterias are the Asian imports (Chinese wisteria & Japanese wisteria). Your 'Amethyst Falls' is a cultivar of the native wisteria, so shouldn't be nearly as aggressive.

I have the species plant (Wisteria frutescens), and it's just starting to spread around in its third year. I kinda wish we'd gotten the cultivar since it would probably bloom more (but more blooms = more seeds, so maybe we're better off?).

Don't panic, but this is a vine, and if it's happy and healthy it can get large, and- if left unattended- presumably strangle nearby plants. The difference is that the Asian wisterias seem able to do this almost overnight, while the American wisteria grows far more slowly, and you should be able to keep it under control fairly easily.

Enjoy!

Virginia

1. Thanks everyone for the reply!! I love all types of Wisteria! What a gorgeous vine!!! I have been admiring this tree forever. But after reading all the stories, pros and cons, I realized this tree is not for me... I have a super energetic, very active 3 years old child and I don't want to babysit a tree on top of all my responsabilities. My house is extremally old, and on the middle of the yard we have an immense swiminpool and if the root of this vine happens to damage the pipes, i dont think my husband will answer for himself. LOL.. I have been reading more negative than positives comments about wisteria.... I got chills just reading Shellfleur gardening experience. Pushing up sidewalks, demaging foundation of houses, and in some cases some houses that are for sale stay sitting on the market forever, bc of this tree. I didn't know the root of this plant can go for miles underground.... What a nightmare! If I was living in a farm, or on a 10 acres propriety i would buy couple of wisterias....but its not the case. Iam not upset about the lost of the money. Iam upset with myself. There are so many information about this plant, and I acted impulsively. i bought it first, for only then get all the info needed.. Sometimes I do stupid things.... thank you guys!

It really depends on the type, though, and where you live, doesn't it? My college had a lovely wisteria arbor near the English department where I took all my classes. I know they didn't fuss with it. This was in Santa Barbara and it just did its thing with no problems. I've definitely thought of a non-invasive type for somewhere in my yard in Seattle.

robin, I am brazilian but I lived in Seattle for 10 years. 8 years in Wallingford and 2 years in Queen Anne. Every Summer I used to go for a daily walks around Green Lake. I love Seattle so much. Great neighborhoods... Love Fremont trail as well. Used to workout at SMB by Lake Union. I learned to love roses while living there. The Rose Garden in Wallingford by the Zoo is amazing! Well... Right now i live in Maryland. Very differnet than Seattle, very hot and humid!!!! :) but i am decided to keep growing roses and hydrangeas and leave the vines for the braves.

Oh, it's always so nice to meet someone who loves Seattle! We were just at Greenlake earlier this week. ;) I like to walk around the lake and then reward myself with a margarita at Rositas. ;) I do understand - whenever people want to grow blackberries I get twitchy. I love them, but man are they hard to keep under control. Enjoy the roses and hydrangeas!

I have just spent the whole morning cutting back 3 months of runaway growth on an old wisteria. It didn't used to be this badly-behaved, but I think it has gone to rootstock. When it reached the point where I could not open the gate into the greenhouse-and-pot area, and couldn't enter the old dog runs (which are now potting-shed and storage). I took it on.

Only this one end, however. It completely covers the dog run, and is trying to eat a trumpet vine and strangle any nearby roses.

Don't plant it! It would take dynamite to get rid of this one, and DH still loves it. So I am stuck with it. This is AFTER removal of two trash cans full of cuttings!

The trunk is lower left.

Gorgeous, Jeri! I'm sorry I'm uneducable. I'll remember you told me so. I even read the thread of difficulties people have and planted one anyway. I think it was all those gardening books I read while living cold. You tried! At least I could learn to prune it.

You are not alone, Sheila.I love wisteria, and have several plants. Maybe it's just that they are still relatively young (oldest one 8-9 years in my garden),or that my conditions are so harsh, but I'm not seeing any real aggressiveness on the part of my plants. What's more, since I lust so for organic matter, I'd be delighted for an extra "two trash cans full of cuttings" (LOL! Jeri, why didn't you just send them over here to me in Italy,LOL!)

AH BART! If I could, I would.

But, really -- THIS is not a wisteria any of you would want. It blooms sparingly, and grows mightily.

It wasn't like that, until a big chunk of the pine tree next door fell on it. I fear that we now have a massive rootstock plant.

The home we moved in to had a wisteria wrapped around a redbud tree. It had strangled the live UT of that poor tree. It also dropped seeds everywhere. They pop up in the lawn and the flower bed.

Our lot is 80ft wide and the wisteria roots go completly end to end. Every time I dig a hole I spend hours pulling out wisteria roots and some of those suckers ate gigantic.

The Bain of my existence

Lol

I grow 2 Wisteria, one Japanese and one American in containers. I also deadhead the flowers so no seed pods form. I am hoping this will contain them. I am also training climbing roses to grow with them.

Brookside Gardens has a lovely pergola with roses climbing up the Wisteria as well.

I just read through this thread because I want to put a climbing rose a couple of feet in front of my arch of emerald falls wisteria. I wasn’t sure if this was a good idea, but I saw a comment that I feel is so inaccurate I felt compelled to write.

I assure you an EMERALD FALLS WISTERIA when in bloom smells like a gorgeous French perfume. I clean the litter box of my male cat and there is absolutely no resemblance whatsoever ever! Yes it is exotic and powerful. Obviously smell is a very personal thing but given the popularity of EFW I believe my nose is spot on.

Hmm... I was just thinking yesterday that I should try to find this thread, to remark that my American Wisteria has become less mannerly in its third year here, and is making land grabs wherever possible. My husband loves wisteria, though, so I will continue to encourage him to wage war against the far more thuggish Asian wisterias, while I try to keep pruning the native.

There really is no comparison, though- the imported thugs will take over while your back is turned, while the native species (and I still regret that I didn't get one of the cultivars out now for better blooms), has taken several years to become somewhat aggressive.

I'm assuming that Sheila and the OP have made their decisions by now, but future readers may want to consider one of the more mannerly cultivars of an American species (W. frutescens and W. macrostachya* being the two that I know of, and some consider the latter to be a sub-species of the former). These might not be good for areas where a thug's survival instincts are needed for less than ideal gardening conditions.

Here's a handy link about the 'Amethyst Falls' cultivar of W. frutescens. The following blurb is about 3 cv's of W. macrostachya:

*Cultivars and their differences

Aunt Dee Kentucky wisteria (Wisteria macrostachya 'Aunt Dee'): Flowers are light purple with a light fragrance. This plant is considered slightly more hardy than the species and may perform well in zone 4.

Blue Moon Kentucky wisteria (Wisteria macrostachya 'Blue Moon'): Blue-purple flowers. This plant is considered slightly more hardy than the species and may perform well in zone 4.

Clara Mack Kentucky wisteria (Wisteria macrostachya 'Clara Mack'): White flowers.

I hope this helps someone.

Virginia

We put in a grafted "Cooke's Special" wisteria next to the yellow "Lady Banks" and it is climbing on a pergola my husband built next to the shop. So far so good. The wisteria repeated bloom all summer. The pergola is quite a ways from the house.Third summer here.

I seem to remember reading somewhere that,though less thuggish, American wisterias like Blue Moon (wisteria macrostachya) is much less spectacular than it's Asian relatives; is this true or false?

bart, I don't grow any of the cultivars, but suppose that they are selections that bloom better than the straight species. And/or they may have been selected for hardiness? Still, I doubt that any of them is as spectacular as the thugs.

Sheila, what is your 'Cooke's Special' grafted onto, if you don't mind my asking?

Virginia

I don't know what devil variety was planted here but even after digging roots or two years it is still popping up everywhere grrrr

I don't know, Virginia. I bought it locally. I'm surprised it blooms all Spring and Summer.

Apparently, Millettia reticulata is considered by some to be a Wisteria alternative, since a common name for it is Evergreen Wisteria. Evidently, it is better-behaved than real wisteria, although not really evergreen, except in zones 9 and warmer.

I don't grow it, but have seen it in a local park (see my photo in the first link), and it is very attractive. I didn't notice the fragrance, but I blame my unreliable nose; fragrance is supposed to be one of its selling points.

Does anyone here grow it?

Virginia

Here's another photo of the same plant... both photos taken in too much sun:

I have a wisteria that I trained into a tree shape. It grew so big and cast so much deep shade, I lost an entire rose bed. So, no. Bad idea.

I'm hoping nothing can swamp a Lady Banks Rose. We might have to learn how to prune wisteria. Shading the shop would be a good thing in our case.

Hi everyone, this is to answer bart_2015

In my opinion, the Japanese types are the most beautiful ones. Each flower can be as long as 36 inches or longer and so fragrance. The Chinese type is about 12 inches long. I think all types of Wisteria flowers are similar and just difference in length and fragrance. I have not seen Kentucky type but Amethyst fall smells horrible and the flower is short, and to me, it's not pretty like other types.

I live in Northern VA . I bought 2 Japanese types when they're covered with flowers, one purple and one white, about 4 and 1/2 yrs ago. Each was 6 feet tall then. Each about 8 feet tall now. Still in tree form. The white one had 4 flowers 2 yrs ago and it's branches are getting longer but I keep it short. The purple one still has short branches.

I see some runners at the base of these trees and I cut them off. So far, they are very well behave for me.

And Leslie, if you like them then go ahead and grow them. I was reluctant to buy wisteria at first but couldn't help it when I saw them full of blooms at the nursery.

I really wish that I can see these blooms again this Spring.

Roses need a lot of sun. I think Azalea are beautiful when they are in bloom at the same time with Wisteria.

Yen

I planted a wisteria over a pergola, after seeing how beautiful wisteria was at Lake Como. Well, it grew and grew, and went right up a big tree, and strangled it. I had to have the tree cut down, and now really keep an eye on what it is trying to attach itself to next.

I lost a redbud tree to wisteria. I just noticed a start about 60 ft from where I dug it up.

Thank you for responding to my question, Yen. I love the way Chinese wisteria covers itself in flowers before the leaves come out. I think Japanese wisteria can be spectacular as well, though you don't see them around as much here in Italy. I tried growing "Amethyst Falls",not realizing that it was an entirely different type of plant . It never "covered itself in flowers" at all,just produced a scattering of blooms amongst the leaves. Looking on Internet,I see that a lot of the pictures of Amethyst Falls confirm my impression that it wasn't just my plant that refused to be spectacular: (for example https://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/307469/) Likewise milletia reticulata just doesn't "do" the same thing for me that the Asian wisterias do. So I am curious to know about these Kentucky wisterias, like "Blue Moon" and "Aunt Dee" ; do they flower like the Asian ones, or more like the frutescens?

Sad to say, I'm still struggling to get my wisterias to thrive. Maybe it's the uber-dry, hot summers,the poor soil, etc., but none of mine are showing any signs of being in the least thuggish...

I wish I could add more details to what I'm about to share, but, unfortunately I was too young to ask the right questions when I lived beside two mature wisteria "trees." When I was growing up in Dallas, TX, where wisteria can run rampant, two different neighbors grew Japanese wisteria as small trees of maybe 8-9 feet tall. Even after decades, the trees were well-behaved. They were grown by gardeners who probably spaded every runner and remained on top of pruning. I do recall that the trees were severely pruned at least once per year. I'm guessing the choice variety was grafted onto rootstock of some kind but can't be sure. The trees would have been planted sometime in the early to mid 1960s, I believe. A tree survived into the 2000s at one location, and the tree at the other location was removed recently.

I also have a few neighbors here in Portland who grow Japanese wisteria on their porches. They harshly prune once a year and then wack stray tendrils all growing season. Their houses remain uneaten even though the wisteria plants are old with large trunks and obviously have been offered years of opportunity to consume everything in their paths.

Climate is a big factor, and Portland falls at the same latitude as part of Japan. So, this might be a good area to keep Japanese wisteria in check and at its best...until global warming changes everything. However, I should add that even in Portland, untended wisteria will rip the siding off your home when you turn your back. It's no delicate, large flowered clematis!

I sympathize with Jeri and Kristine. Rootstock is the biggest thug! Viscious, sneaky, aggressive and thoroughly immoral. I wonder if there are nurseries that offer cutting grown plants like roses from own-root nurserie? I think I'd lean toward cutting grown when choosing a wisteria cultivar in order to avoid the "thing beneath the soil" escaping and smothering home and garden! Carol

I have my aggressive wisteria on one side of the yard. On the other side I have an equally aggressive Virginia Creeper!

bart, if you didn't like 'Amethyst Falls', I really wouldn't expect any of the other American wisteria cultivars to suit your floral preferences. It seems that they may be hardy in a few places where the Asian varieties aren't, but I think the real benefit of growing an American species is that it is slower growing, and thus less invasive/destructive. In much of the eastern U.S., conditions are just too favorable. As mentioned, wisterias will strangle trees and reseed like crazy here.

Virginia

Thank you, Virginia, that is sort of what I wanted to know. I recently found "Blue Moon" available at a nursery here in Italy, but it isn't worth spending money on it in my situation if it's flowering habit is basically like that of the Amethyst Falls pictured on the Dave's Garden site.

I believe that the Kentucky species (or sub-species) does have larger flowers than the American species, but I'm pretty sure that neither has flowers as large as the Asian species.

How did 'Amethyst Falls' grow for you, though? Was it as vigorous as the plant you have now?

Sorry it took a while for me to get back,Virginia. My wisteria situation is complicated, so I can't give a simple response to your question. Since I had always read about how thuggish wisteria is supposed to be, how drought-tolerant and vigorous, I planted my first wisterias in areas of my garden that are un-adapted for roses due to poor and shallow soil (i.e.,very rocky,even having bedrock close to the surface in spots. My garden is on a hill, about 600 meters above sea level,with erosion issues). Well, I learned that wisteria-at least in my garden-is by no means all that thuggish and vigorous! Two of mine-a Chinese and a Japanese-look like they are basically dwindling away,not being vigorous enough to thrive in the drought of summer in the soil conditions they have. Another japanese(?) one,"Prematura" is instead growing very vigourously and I want to prune it more in hopes of getting more flowers. Two "Prolifics" are doing Ok, it seems, though one has never flowered and I'm beginning to wonder if maybe it, too, has overly thin soil. A third Prolific is doing well, but it has good soil.So, it's hard to make a comparison . Amethyst Falls seemed OK as a plant,but ended out dying off at the graft. It wasn't the size of the flowers that disappointed me ; it was the quantity; they didn't cover the whole plant the way the Chinese ones do...

Hi bart-2005, is there any tip how to prune Japanese wisteria to get it to bloom. One of my bloomed 2 yrs ago and one never bloomed. When I got them from the nursery, they're both full of blooms. I am in VA. I read that wisteria should be pruned once in July and again in January or February. I really appreciate if you can give some ideas. Thank you.

I wish I could help you,nie3,but I myself am still "stumbling around in the dark", as it were, when it comes to wisteria. Maybe you could try posting on the Vines forum to see if anyone there can help...

Thank you bart_2015

Does anyone think wisteria will grow in Northern Arizona? It is very hot and windy all the time, should I worry about it taking over?

I bet it would do fine.

Sheila, its beautiful.

@Lizzi

I read Japanese and China types are invasive. ( Floribunda and Sinensis ) The North American type is not invasive called
Wisteria Frutescens or something like that.

I know Jasmin and Perma has it growing here, Florida, in their Neighborhood. I saw one here but it is not scented.

You can grow any but you have to control Japanese and Chinese one.

I’m in central Italy, just north of Rome and a little inland, and our place has no soil whatsoever so everything we grow here is grown in pots. I tried a few Chinese wisterias here over the first three years we were here and they grew fine in very large pots but we never saw a flower and some of their roots escaped out the bottom of the pots.

We then bought several Amethyst Falls last year to grow in areas where we needed to use smaller pots, and after a little over a year we’re actually really thrilled with them. Most flowered in their first year and basically all have now flowered in their second. However, as I’d read prior to getting them, they grow far more slowly than the Chinese wisterias.

A couple of months ago, after lots of research, we replaced the four two year old Chinese wisterias we had growing over our gazebo with year old Blue Moons, and as I’d read would be the case, at this point they’re growing almost as quickly as the Chinese wisterias, though they say their growth settles down after the first couple of years. The leaves on the Blue Moons are more sparse than those on the Chinese wisterias though, but personally I’m finding that more attractive, and I have to say that aesthetically I find the leaves on both the Amethyst Falls and the Blue Moons more attractive than those on the Chinese wisterias; they’re a slightly bluer shade of green, slightly less transparent and a little less veiny.

As a bonus though, just two months after we planted our year old Blue Moons, we have two buds on one of them and a flower on another. And something many may not be aware of with American wisterias is that not only do they flower within 1-3 years, but they also repeat flower right throughout the warmer months. And, while the flowers on Amethyst Falls are only 3-6 inches long (still very pretty though), those on Blue Moon are around 12 inches long, so similar in size to Chinese wisterias. And, while Amethyst Falls has a very mild and unusual scent, the flowers on Blue Moon are renowned for having a particularly beautiful scent.

In summary, every one of our Chinese wisterias has, over the past year, now been gifted to friends, and though they’re all now 3-5 years old, not one has yet flowered. In contrast, almost all of our 1-2 year old Amethyst Falls have flowered repeatedly over this past year, along with at least one of our year old Blue Moons. And, while the Amethyst Falls are certainly less flashy than the Chinese wisterias, they are extremely manageable and are still very beautiful, and due to their smaller size and slower growth habit we’ve been able to plant them in medium sized pots in places like our rooftop terrace, our balconies, and numerous other places where we couldn’t have anything too big. In fact, we live in the historic centre of a medieval town and we ended up buying over 40 of them, 9 of which we’ve kept for ourselves, and the remainder of which we’ve gifted to other townspeople living here in the Centre, along with some medium sized pots, and they now line several of the streets of the historic centre.

And as to the Blue Moons, I’m already absolutely thrilled with them, and after initially just planting them around our gazebo, I’ve just bought another 6 which we’re going to plant either side of our rear doorways, outside our rear gate, and at the base of a very tall wall at the end of our little street, none of which I would have dared do with the Chinese wisterias. The one outside our gate, btw, is going to share a very large terracotta pot with a Papa Meilland climbing rose, though we will be dividing the pot space into two to keep their roots separate…

See my comment above from 6 years ago. We are STILL having to ask our gardeners to dig up any wisteria shoots which want to grow into our bush of 'Cl American Beauty'. We have tried everything short of nuclear bombs to get rid of what we think (from family history) is a rootstock wisteria from 110+ years ago, to no avail. Beware.

Jackie

Yes, absolutely; that’s one of the main reasons I ended up opting to use replace our Chinese wisterias with the less aggressive American ones, and it’s also one of the reasons I’m very glad our garden is fully paved and that all of our plants are in pots, because it’s far easier to keep them under control that way