Hey everyone I new to the message board. My nae is Brenda. Got a question. My neighbor has a wisteria tree. I know some plants you can get clippings and put them in water and it will start to grow a root system and then put them in the ground. Does anyone know if that will work with wisteria? Thanks.
You're asking the wrong question - not only will it take root, but unless you grow it in a pot (bonsai), you won't be able to control it!
Hi Brenda, Wisteria are not trees. They are woody vines (lianas). If your neighbor has a tree wisteria it has been cultured to grow that way and it takes some work to do it. They are very vigorous growers as Rima says. You must have seen them climbing high up into the trees there in Georgia - the growth is almost scary in your area. There are several posts about wisteria on the forums and some that discuss the tree shaping of the vine. You can find them by using the Search function on the green bar at the top of the page. I don't really know anything about taking cuttings of them.
To answer your question... I just rooted one in rooting medium 3 weeks ago- it's a gel like substance and I got it from the local nursery. So far so good. Took a clipping of new growth about 5 inches long and stuck the end in the gel. There's also another way which is how I got my original wisteria. My grandma had one out back and if you look along the ground near to the stem there are usually little runners you can dig up and plant. I planted 3 runners and only one took. (BTW, I keep mine in pots) Erica
I would also try rooting the Wysteria by "pouch soil" as I call it...bag a moist medium around a stem that has rooting hormone applied prior, and wait 6 months or by fall, and plant in the spring...it sounds a tad unorthodox,but it has worked in the past...
That is the technique of air layering. It is my preferred method for propagating wisteria because it allows propagation from woody mature material. Wisteria propagated with this method flowers a lot sooner than those propagated from cuttings. Here is an excellent article on air layering.
While it is true that wisteria is actually a woody vine, if you want it to resemble a tree you can do what I did. I bought a young one that had several vines which while woody were not yet hard. I braided those vines together, tying them with twine every six inches. Then I trimmed off any lower leaves and kept this up until I had it the height I wanted. I only braided it a few feet, but the next one I intend to braid up to about 8 feet. Naturally it will have to be supported with a post until the bottom vines have grown together and are large enough to support the top portion. I have a friend who wants one, so I am starting one for him.
