Ok – So, I broke down and went ahead and bought a Wisteria vine to put up in my “small” backyard. Not a chinese or Japanese Wisteria, rather the “Lawrence” Wisteria, which is an American Variety.
“Lawrence” is an American cultivar that is said to flower within 2-3 years in North America. I admit, it’s probably not as beautiful as the Chinese/Japanese variations, but it also doesn’t take 10 years to flower like them either. As well, it grows in Canada, which can’t be said of most Wisteria, North of Toronto.
Furthermore, unlike bad in-laws, ‘Lawrence’ doesn’t take over the garden, hedging, wall, and entrance to your house. It is quite stately, and limits itself to 15-25 feet. Compare that to any of those Chinese Variations which can grow 50 +feet. Not to mention a root system so strong, you can’t kill it with a crane and dynamite.
So that’s that. It’s considered a favorite in North America. The other Wisteria I debated purchasing was Wisteria Blue Moon – which was bred in Minnesota. I figured, if it can flower in MN, it can flower in Zone 6-5 Ontario. Blue Moon is definitely more popular in the Wisteria community, but I preferred Lawrence based on the advice of some Canadian master Gardeners.
Where to buy?
Ok – where to buy? Oh boy. I was willing to dish out, more then average, to buy this select cultivar. I checked several online sites. Unfortunately, by July, all Shipping inventory was sold out.
It was quite scary when I couldn’t even order the plan I needed. A thought struck me. Being up here in Canada, the local “Big Nurseries” probably stock American Wisteria, only because they grow well in Canada.
I hit many, many, local nurseries, but they only carried the Chinese Wisteria variations. After visiting several, I found 1 that sold “Blue Moon”. And just as I was going to take that one, lo and behold, I found a nursery 30 minutes away that carries the Lawrence variety. And it wasn’t selling, so it was on sale. So lesson learned, local nurseries carry everything. You just have to check all of them.
The best news was, since it was July, all Perennial Shrubs and Vines were on sale, so I picked this plant up for under $30. Online, I was looking at $60US.
Ok – Lastly – I mentioned this book before. It covers all Wisteria plants, but also includes many references to the Lawrence variation (including history).
Reference Material
Wisterias: A Comprehensive Guide
Thank you! You often write very interesting articles. You improved my mood.
Do you remember the online sites for ordering wisteria? I have been looking but unable to find any.
Thanks,
Jake
Hi Jake,
Let me look through my bookmarks and see if I can find the site. It was Canadian, not sure if that will work for you.
Well, it’s not exactly BETTER than Blue Moon since it won’t grow in zone 4. I live in Minneapolis and we can see temps -35 degrees. Lawrence wouldn’t survive that! Thanks for the info but I’ll stick with Blue Moon.
Hi Carol, BETTER is probably not the right adjective, I agree! My ‘Lawrence’ has survived 3 years of Toronto winters, which can hit 35F as well. (We’ve hit -50C, but not in the past 10 years). So the jury’s out still