Wisteria

The wisteria is blooming on the roadsides, in yards, and any other place it was left unattended. Wisteria is not a native plant, but has been in the South so long that even William Faulkner used it in Absalom, Absalom as a symbol for miscegenation and the South and a trellis for this book(Just my opinion, don't quote me). This wisteria is in my ditch climbing all over the trees.

I took a look at my site meter statistics today and many people who come here are looking for information about wisteria. I am not a botanist or even a landscaper, but here is what I know after having grown up in the South.

• If your wisteria does not bloom you over fertilized it or pruned it after it set buds. Wisteria in an invasive species in the South and no one fertilizes those "gone wild" plants. They bloom beautifully.
  
• Prune your wisteria immediately after the bloom to insure that you don't lose blooms.
  
• Don't plant a wisteria if you are only a seasonal gardener and live in the South. You must keep on top of pruning or the plant will take over your yard, tree, or house. Immediately remove unwanted vines. Left to grow until after the bloom could be disastrous.
  
• Don't plant wisteria near a concrete foundation or a basement type home. The roots grow almost as profusely as the vines. They will damage the foundation.
• Don't plant wisteria near your plumbing. The vines will grow through your sewage lines or water lines, thereby making them useless. You will have to replace the pipes.
• If you have a wisteria you don't want, hire a backhoe. You may be able to get all the roots, but probably not.

After all this bad publicity, why would anyone want to grow these pesky plants. Beauty! The clusters of lavender or white blooms draping along the edge of the porch provide shade. The meticulously tree formed specimens bloom in tandem with the redbud, dogwood, and azalea. The "sweet and oversweet" perfume from the blossoms can transport you South and to the past.

You may even get twice bloomed wisteria in a summer!

"Sweet and oversweet" is from William Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom. You don't have to read far to find it --one or two sentences. Of course, one or two sentences could be two pages.