There is nothing more romantic than the sight of a mature wisteria in full flower during the early months of summer.
The good news is that it’s easy to keep the vine repeat flowering year after year, simply by following an easy, twice yearly pruning regime; once in late summer and the other time in late winter.
What to prune from your Wisteria
You’ll notice that immediately after flowering the plant will suddenly put on a frenzy of growth. This will result in producing lots of long, whippy, leafy stems. These, if left unchecked, will, in the blink of an eye, romp up walls, drainpipes and fences!
It’s these long stems that will need pruning at this time of year. And the reason for doing this is not just to stop excessive stem growth. But to also start the process of encouraging the plant to produce flower buds for next year’s flowers.
How to prune your Wisteria
The process is extremely straightforward. Plus, all you’ll need (apart from a stable ladder – tripod ladders are ideal) is a pair of sharp secateurs.
Take each long stem and trace it back to the main stem of the wisteria. Start from the point where the long stem grows out of the plant’s main stem. Next, count approximately five to seven buds along the whippy stem. Finally, cut the rest of the stem off and that’s it!
By the time you finish, all the long whippy shoots should be much shorter. And all will have about five to seven sets of leaves or buds left on each stem.
How to plant a softwood cutting
Make a diary note to do the same thing again in January or February. However, on that occasion, you’ll be cutting those same stems even shorter. Therefore, leave just two to three sets of buds remaining on each stem.
You’ll be creating what is known as ‘fruiting spurs’ which send signals to the plant to convert those leaf buds into flower buds. Nature is so clever!
Keeping your wisteria blooming at its best is easily done with a good pruning routine. By pruning now, next years display will be even more stunning.
Find out more about pruning and training Wisteria:
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David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
I prune my wisteria twice once summer then January or February but not flowers for about 3year so I don’t no why