Japanese wisteria

When watering Japanese wisteria, it is important to provide adequate moisture but without overwatering. Depending on the season, water the plant on a regular but varied schedule. During the hot summer months, watering twice a week is usually sufficient, but in the cooler fall and winter months, watering once a week is enough. Be sure to pour enough water to moisten the soil at least 4 to 6 inches deep, allowing it to dry a bit in between watering.

Japanese wisteria grows best in full sunlight during the cooler part of the day. In areas where the temperatures can become quite hot during the day, such as in climates with Mediterranean or subtropical climates, providing shade from the hot afternoon sun is recommended. It should receive at least 4-6 hours of direct sunlight daily to encourage blooming and produce healthy foliage.

Japanese wisteria should be pruned twice a year—once in late winter or early spring and again in mid-summer. When pruning in late winter or early spring, the primary goal is to control the size and shape of the plant, so remove any dead, damaged, or weak branches, as well as any unwanted suckers. You should also reduce the length of whippy shoots by cutting them back to 5 leaves or pairs of leaves from the main framework. In mid-summer, wisteria can be encouraged to flower by pruning back the shoots to 5 or 6 leaves or leaf pairs. This encourages flower buds to form on the pruned shoots and should result in an impressive display when the flowers bloom the following spring.