Wisteria Lane....

I have started this blog to share the things I love and quite possibly as therapy for my overactive mind, which is always full of this and that. Many of you will know this feeling... there is always an idea in my head, not always a practical doable one, but always an idea .I admit that often it is a daydream believing idea... but what fun. I also confess to never ever being bored!! Not ever... even when I seem to be staring into space, there is always something hatching in my grey matter!!!...and very often it is in pursuit of the perfect garden... Me, myself and I can literally while away hours, looking for that perfect patch of ground with mountains as my background for the my parterre, a mini Monet garden, a rose patch of antique roses...hmmm the list is never ending, and the three of us keep each other entertained for hours... what bliss. Now, one of my all time favourite plants has to be Wisteria.... to me it is just the most romantic of plants, ever... just have a look at this.... isn't it romantic...and the colour...nature's palette of pleasure...Gardener's also call it "Purple Rain" and you can see why!


Take a closer look at the delicate beauty and the colour....


Here it tumbles spectacularly over an ancient bridge and into Lake Como in Italy...breathtaking, isn't it?


And look at this... part of the architecture...like a postcard...

The image below was the background on my desktop for a while, but I removed it as it was distracting me all the time!!!

 It combines three of my favourite things! Wisteria, a terracotta hued wall ( the perfect colour to show off the lilac wisteria's beauty) and of course the intricate design of the wrought iron gate....total perfection for me. It just satisfies my eye so completely and is fully representative of the beauty of nature meeting man made functional art. Oh, and just that splash of green....hmmm ...perfection!

This beauty's  more botanical name is Wisteria Sinensis. It does better in slightly acid soil. I have one in my garden which seems to struggle a bit. A friend suggested that I give it 100 grams of Magnesium sulphate (Epsom salts) to promote flowering, every three months after the flowers have finished. so hopefully mine will look more like these in the pics. Never the less it gives me much joy. It is currently in the corner of my rose garden and I am thinking of planting Rosa Albertine to supplement it. The pink will look stunning with the lilac!

This one must be ancient... look at the size of that trunk! Wow! Part of the charm is of course, when the ground becomes carpeted in blooms as they drop adding more magic to the already spectacular scene!
500 hundred years of history has passed under it's bloomin watch....no kidding...read more here.





Above is the Wisteria tunnel at Laurel Bank Park, Toowoomba, Australia.

Look at these via




A perfect bunch...more here



It also makes the most amazing bonsai subject...



I also love the shape of the lime green leaves, which shows off the colour of the blooms and the woody trunk and twining branches.


Of course it is a vigorous twining creeper but for the more adventurous gardener who enjoys a challenge it can be grow in a pot with some judicious pruning and care.  It can also be grown as a standard in your lawn and be trained into a graceful umbrella shape with it's cascading fragrant blooms. Which ever way you choose to grow it, you will love it heralding spring with such grace and beauty.

So, there is much to look forward to with the promise of such beauty awaiting us. But first, there is a load to be done with the renovations in my own garden. With the start of winter, now here in Cape Town, I have many plants to move to a new spot....well, just as soon as it stops raining....

Happy planting and pottering...

Any folks in the northern part who has a wisteria in bloom...enjoy!!

Yours in Twigs

V

Pics 1-5 via Pininterest. the others as per links.