Re: "dead" wisteria

Caroline Frost wrote: 
I inherited two lovely, young wisteria in the backyard
of my new home. Late last winter I did my best to
prune the somewhat neglected plants, following advice
culled from various internet articles (I'm a new
gardener; this was my very first pruning session.)

Come spring, one plant flourished, producing abundant
foliage and blooms. Alas, the other plant shows no
signs of life, apart from several shoots which have
sprouted at its base. A friendly neighbor suggests
that I nurture these shoots, winding them around the
plant's lifeless limbs for support as they grow.

Do you think this is the best strategy to follow, or
should I consider replacing the plant? Any ideas as to
what I did/didn't do to cause such damage to it in the
first place?


Hi Caroline.
Welcome to the fascinating world of pruning!

Not being able to see the two plants I can't begin to guess why if, as you say, both plants are relatively young the one plant has failed to regrow from the stems you left, as obviously from the basal sprouts it is putting out the root is still very much alive. I have never heard of a young vigorous Wisteria having its topgrowth killed simply by shortening back the stems, especially where a comparable plant has not been set back. Of course I don't know if they were exactly the same or perhaps two different species (though as far as I know this should not affect how they are pruned anyway).

There certainly seems no reason why you should not regrow the vine from these shoots. I see your neighbour suggested using the dead stems as a support for the new vine. While this could look very picturesque I wonder if it is a good idea as we still don't know what killed the older ones and they might be better cut away so as not to pose a danger to the new growth. For instance, in some places wisteria plants can suffer quite severely from borer in the stems and this would certainly be hazard for the new shoots if it was present.

One thing which puzzles me is that you should even need to consider using the old stems as support, as any Wisteria always needs a regular support to grow on or it simply forms a huge tangled mess and I am surprised if this plant does not already have one. Apart from the necessity to train the vine to avoid a tangle, wisterias flower much better if they are regularly thinned removing excess growth over summer as it appears and this is much easier if the vine is properly spread out on a framework. Too many stems compete for light and air and produce much poorer blooming as a result.

I don't know how much detail you were able to get regarding the pruning of these vines from the internet but a good account should include detailed suggestions for training. You might do well to consult your local library for a good illustrated book on pruning to help you with this. Some years ago there was an excellent pruning book in the Sunset gardening series which I used to own. I don't know if a later edition is still available and unfortunately I no longer have mine but gave it to the girl who eventually took over my gardening business (a gift which I still sometimes regret). It is so easy to follow with very good diagrams, perhaps you could find one second hand if new ones are not available. If I still had mine I could have copied out the page for you.

I am sure this reply raises as many questions as it answers and you may like to discuss it further. Sorry I can't give more definite answers.
Moira

--
Tony & Moira Ryan,
Wainuiomata, North Island, NZ.     Pictures of our garden at:-
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/cherie1/Garden/TonyandMoira/index.htm
NEW PICTURES ADDED 4/Feb/2004

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