Cover your garden arbor in wisteria vine for beautiful, aromatic purple blooms.
Some of them are overly rambunctious, and can quickly take over your garden.
Native wisteria species arent as aggressive or as large, but theyre just as gorgeous.
Credit: [Hans Henning Wenk]/Getty Images
Heres how to grab the best wisteria variety for your landscape.
American wisteria vines can reach dazzling heights of up to 30 feet.
(Fun fact: this vine always grows counterclockwise when twining around a support.)
‘Amethyst Falls’ American wisteria creates a purple cascade of blooms over an arbor.Credit: Courtesy of Sarah White/Clemson Extension
Another native to try is the (Wisteria macrostachya)or Kentucky wisteria.
It can grow up to 25 feet tall, and begins blooming in June.
The Blue Moon variety has fragrant, bluish-purple flower clusters that can reach a foot in length.
Once theyre established, its very difficult to get rid of non-native wisterias because of their tough root system.
Do your planting in the spring or fall.
And for the best blooms, be sure toprune your plant every year in late winter.
Wisterias flower on new growth and pruning encourages more stems to sprout on the plant.
Pay close attention to the plant tags, and look for varieties of the native species.
Theylladd gorgeous flowersto your yard without becoming a nuisance.
