Taming very established Wisteria

Update:
I'm getting very excited (and have my fingers crossed) that the Wisteria will soon burst into flower…

 

Oooooo I was only wondering yesterday how it was! My Black Dragon is just starting to open Thanks for the update!

 

Hi @noisette47, different parts of the garden have been blooming since early feb, and we're constantly surprised each time something new appears. Have also been enjoying 3 different flowering Camellia bushes and numerous clusters of Tulips. It's amazing to see so much in the garden stir back into life. Watching the Wisteria buds appear over the last few weeks has been my secret obsession (was a hard labour of love to winter prune). Most buds are 2 meters from the main trunk, however plenty reach out beyond 8 meters - through the rambling roses, out towards the end of the pergola.

Since the Wisteria buds look so plump, I wondered if any birds would take them?…

 

Hi Phil, isn't it wonderful? After so many months of dreariness, it's so exciting to see things coming to life. Must be especially exciting the first year in a new garden! Now you've done the initial hatchet job on the Wisteria, things will get much easier. Either January/June or February/July you cut back any new, wispy shoots (that you don't want to form new framework) back to two buds. These will form flower spurs. If you do want to increase the framework of main branches, just tie them in where you want them to go.
I've never experienced any problems with birds pecking buds, either here or in UK. If you or your neighbours have fruit trees, they're more likely to go for those!

 

Think the only problem could be a frost.
I've known that to kill all the flower buds at this time of the year.

 

you made me laugh Pete I had a white variety now dead due to voles eating all the bark around the main stem !! and it was in full flower we had a frost the next day look like wet handkerchiefs hanging from the plant !!

Spruce

 

After weeks of heavy rain, I thought our garden looked lovely this morning.

The Wisteria began to form buds back in April, but watched with disappointment as nearby varierties have been in full bloom since the beginning of May. I thought perhaps something was wrong and our Wisteria was dormant due to heavy winter pruning, or perhaps being in shade from 6pm?

It is said 'a watched pot never boils', and with the bad weather I'd not ventured along the pergola in weeks… then good news. The flowering stems are beginning to fill out with blooms - and look as if they'll reach full bloom in a week or two. It's already a gorgeous sight and feels well worth the freezing cold hard work in February.

Oh… and the rambling roses have come on well - if not too well. Excited to see what happens when those burst into flower too.

 

thanks for the update ... looking fab

 

Little Wisteria Update.
Thanks again to everyone who helped give advice well over a year ago. When I started to 'tame' the Wisteria we inherited. As suggested here, it did flower, but wasn't in full flowering abundance. However, another year on and after 2 seasons of pruning, it has now bloomed gloriously.

Over the last year, our gardening adventure had stalled (other than constant pruning) while I've been fixing up the house and building a new shed/workshop too. My wife and I are now starting to think about changes and planting we would like to make elsewhere in the garden so it becomes ours rather than 100% what the previous owners did…

 

looking great ... thanks for the update

Spruce

 

Hello Phil, well done! You've certainly got the Wisteria cracked now So....onto the exciting part where you make some changes. Keep us posted