Saturday, 9 May 2009

Explosion in a lilac factory

I have something of a love-hate relationship with our wisteria. It drops a frustratingly large volume of leaves on our little garden, it regularly breaks its restraining wires and it requires Mr DC to scale tall ladders for the twice yearly pruning.



But then, for 2 weeks every year it looks like this, and I am forced to forgive it all over again.


Can you smell it? One year a late frost destroyed all the flower buds - a very sad May indeed!

39 comments:

Thimbleina said...

So beautiful I wish we had wisteria

Ali said...

Okay, this year when he ascends the ladder, will you please e-mail me so I can do ours (or get hubby to).

Last year it flowered for the first time and was glorious. And this year? About 10 flowers. Hopeless.

I can only suspect we are mis-pruning it.

silverpebble said...

Lovely lovely lovely. There's a wisteria in our village trained along three levels of a cottage. The owners come out with nail scissors to do VERY special tiny pruning. It is very pretty though x

wonderwoman said...

that is sooo beautiful - i went past a cottage today absolutely dripping with blossom - how i'd love to have that over the front of my house.

xx

joe said...

le sigh c'est tres, tres jolie.

Moogsmum said...

Beautiful! Well worth the risky pruning from Mr DC :-)

xxx

Lynn said...

Beyond magical!! (Be careful, Mr DC!)

Kitty said...

Wow ... it's stunning. x

driftwood said...

oh so lovely, don't let my hubby near it, his idea of pruning is very drastic....

JuliaB said...

Splendid indeed! x

Lucy Locket-Pocket said...

It really is beautiful! Shame it's only in flower for a couple of weeks though. Have you been busy at your allotment lately? We need to see some photos!

Lucy x

The Coffee Lady said...

super pretty

kristina said...

Gorgeous! Maybe we should have waited for an allotment plot with a wall...

K x

Gina said...

It looks so beautiful I think you could forgive it anything. Pruning??? Gosh... didn't know I was supposed to prune it. Haven't been near mine!

Poshyarns said...

Oh my, oh my, so beautiful. I have always wanted wisteria and indeed planted it twice but always moved before seeing it get going.

alice c said...

I think that the wisteria has been particularly beautiful this year. I saw one that was trained, cork screw fashion around a fireescape, and it looked spectacular. The thought of pruning with nail scissors is not good - especially at the top of a ladder.

julie said...

wow it's beautiful - I can understand why it's earnt your forgiveness even if it is temporary!

Jane said...

oh you Wisteria is beautiful and they do smell so lovely. I walked through an archway of Wisteria at Beaulieu and the scent was sweet and heady. Jane x

Handmade in Israel said...

Wow - it looks incredible! Enjoy it, even for a short time.

Rhiannon said...

Oh I love wisteria so much
When I was in Oxford yesterday ,I went into my friends college and there was wisteria like this all over the main quad. So pretty I had to take a picture! (coming soon to a blog near you...:P)

xxx

Diane said...

"Look at the Wisteria on that!!!" (Its my favorite phrase at the moment!!) I have Wisteria envy.

Taz said...

I can see how you can forgive it for that special 2 weeks of the year.

Lina said...

Blimey, that's impressively large and quite stunning!

Dragonfly said...

Wow! It is truly gorgeous. I have several plants in my garden that I feel exactly the same about!

Thimbleanna said...

WOW! That's gorgeous. I'd love to have a pretty wisteria. I heard once though that it takes 7 years from planting for them to bloom?

Ragged Roses said...

Oh yes but those two weeks , they are worth it aren't they!
Kimx

Fancy Elastic said...

look, look! Absolutely beautiful.

x

Tracy said...

Lavender-lilac bliss...what a stunning display of blooms...and I can almost smell that special scent...ah...How lucky you have that beauty just out your door...Thank you for sharing :o) ((HUGS))

Primrose Corner said...

That winsteria is just beautiful. I've always loved it. Such a dreamy, drooping, dripping flowery habit it's got. The colour is heavently too.

Gina said...

It's stunning! :)

peppermintpatcher said...

Incredible and worthy of keeping.

Michaela said...

Yes, you could forgive it almost anything when it looks like that couldn't you? I love wisteria.

dutchcomfort said...

I love wisteria! Great pictures!

Magic Cochin said...

Lovely! I was so pleased there was a Wisteria in the garden when we moved here. The previous owners said it never flowered! And it had been strangled in orange binder twine. Ten years of TLC and it's spectacular every May (except the year it got frosted - the same year as yours I suspect). It's like a scented waterfall along our high garden wall - it's so uplifting to see it!

Celia
x

Lesley (Notesfrommydays) said...

hi there :-) finally getting round to visiting my fav blogs again and leaving comments !!! i feel like ive missed out on a good party or something LOL
love the wisteria - i planted one last year and was told it would take years before the flowers would come along but its flowered this year already although not anywhere near how fab yours is!!!
yes that is my garden by the way and yes it does take up some time but love being outside so not to much like hard work ;-)
lesley x

monica said...

soo soo beautiful. the house I grew up in had a massive one too.. and the smell is glorious!!

sarah said...

super gorgeous!

joanie said...

Gasp... what a beauty! They are tricky things, but so worth it. I really hope you don't have the gusty winds we're having or those petals will be turning into a lilac blizzard!

Rachel said...

Wisteria as public service: Sylvia at the end of my street has a wisteria, and it scents the whole area when the wind is right. This year she has a white one alongside, so delicate and lacy. Well worth the ladders and the sweeping up, I'd say.

Lovely blog, BTW; I'll come back for a thorough read soon.