Wisteria Pruning: A Complete Guide

When to Prune Wisteria

Wisteria benefits from twice-yearly pruning:

• Summer Pruning (July/August):
  After flowering, cut back the green shoots of the current year’s growth to five or six leaves. This controls size and encourages flower bud formation.
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• Winter Pruning (January/February):
  When the plant is dormant, trim the shoots you pruned in summer to two or three buds. This ensures flowers won’t be hidden by leaves.

How to Prune Wisteria

Follow these steps for successful wisteria pruning:

1. Summer Pruning:

• Cut back whippy green shoots to control size.
• Encourage flower buds by limiting vegetative growth.

2. Winter Pruning:

• Trim shoots pruned in summer to tidy up the plant.
• Ensure flowers remain visible.

3. Hard Pruning or Renovation:

• For older plants, remove old, worn-out growths.
• Cut back long branches or branches over windows.
• Create a well-spaced skeleton framework.
• Avoid feeding in the first spring after hard pruning.
• Train new growths for replacement branches.

Additional Tips

• Remove root suckers on grafted varieties.
• Prune away stems growing away from the desired framework.
• Trace and mark twining branches before removal.

Remember, wisteria pruning may seem complex, but with these guidelines, you’ll maintain a healthy, vibrant plant. For more details, check out the RHS Gardening guide.

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