How long does it take for Chinese Wisteria to grow?

Wisteria is a vigorous grower, and we love how it can cover pergolas, arches, fences, etc., in curtains of fragrant blossoms. But sometimes things go wrong, and your Wisteria doesn’t grow as fast as you expected. Luckily, there are steps you can take to jumpstart Wisteria growth.

If your Wisteria isn’t growing, make sure it’s healthy and has the right growing conditions. Check for pests and disease, provide space to climb, plenty of sunlight, sufficient water, and add amendments to your soil. You may also need to give your plant time to establish a strong root system.

We’ve got ten things you can do to speed up your Wisteria growth. Follow our tips, and your Wisteria will be living up to the hype in no time.

Wisteria can grow at what feels like lightning speed. Depending on the variety and conditions, it can quickly grow ten feet per year or even up to 25 feet. Remember that this growth isn’t just straight up; Wisteria puts out shoots that can grow several feet in a season.

Wisteria grows fastest after they’ve had a few years to get established and before they reach mature size. Typical mature height for Wisteria ranges from 10 feet to over 30 feet, depending on the type of Wisteria, and some will keep growing indefinitely. 

Young and recently planted Wisteria tend to grow much more slowly while their roots get established. When you buy a Wisteria plant from a nursery, expect minimal growth for the first year or two, moderate growth for the next couple of years after that, and then the crazy fast growth Wisteria is famous for. 

It can also take several years for Wisteria to bloom. A Wisteria from a nursery will usually start to bloom two to five years after you plant it. If you start Wisteria from seed, it can take as much as 15 years to flower.

How To Encourage Wisteria To Grow Faster

When it comes to the quick sprawl we so separately want to see for our Wisteria,  growing conditions and time are the important factors. In the perfect location, Wisteria can take off pretty quickly, but it won’t grow at all under the wrong conditions. Below you will find our ten tips for growing your Wisteria bigger faster.

Tip 1: Give It Time 

With a Wisteria you’ve recently planted, not growing the first year or two is pretty common. Wisteria usually is a fast grower, but it is also long-lived and takes time to get established.

If you planted the Wisteria within the last year or two and it hasn’t taken off yet, it may just be getting its root system established. As long as the foliage looks healthy, don’t worry — give it another year, and there’s a good chance next summer it’ll start growing like crazy. Sometimes Wisteria can take as long as five years to start the notoriously rapid growth you hear about, but it’s uncommon to take that long.

Tip 2: Treat Any Pests or Diseases

If your Wisteria is suffering from bugs or disease, that could be inhibiting its growth. Wilted areas, yellow or brown leaves, and spots on leaves or stems can indicate that the Wisteria isn’t healthy. Check the plant over carefully for pests. 

Wisteria is prone to scale insects, borers, aphids, honey mildew, powdery mildew, leaf spots, and crown rot. If your Wisteria is suffering from health problems, clearing those up could be essential to get it growing again. 

Tip 3: Make Sure It Gets Plenty of Sun 

Wisteria likes full sun, especially while it’s young. Older plants and some Wisteria varieties can tolerate part shade, but failure to grow may be a sign that your plant is not getting the amount of sun it needs.

This can be tough to fix when your Wisteria is already in the ground. If other plants around the Wisteria are shading it, consider pruning or relocating them. (If it isn’t possible to get your Wisteria more sun, you may simply want to get another one and plant it in a sunnier spot.) You can also try transplanting, but know that Wisteria doesn’t always respond well to being moved.

Tip 4: Water 

Wisteria, especially when mature, is thirsty. If the weather has been dry and your Wisteria is looking wilted, not getting enough water could be the culprit. Give it a drink, but be sure not to overwater, particularly if your soil doesn’t drain very well. Wisteria doesn’t like wet feet.

Tip 5: Improve Your Soil 

Wisteria isn’t too picky about soil, but it does have some needs, and the wrong soil could prevent average growth. The best soil for Wisteria is well-drained, moist, neutral to mildly acidic, moderately fertile, and deep. 

If your soil isn’t draining well, you can try incorporating some compost into the soil around the Wisteria. Also, avoid compacting the soil – walk on it as little as possible and put down mulch to absorb your weight when you need to walk there.

If your soil is alkaline (the opposite of acidic), apply some garden sulfur, ammonium sulfate, or ferrous sulfate to bring the pH down. You can get your soil tested through your local extension service.

For more information on the best soil for your Wisteria, read this article.

Tip 6: Fertilize (or Stop Fertilizing) 

Wisteria doesn’t need super fertile soil, but if your soil is really deficient in nutrients, you might need to apply some fertilizer to get your Wisteria growing. This is especially true if you’re growing Wisteria in a container and haven’t repotted or applied fertilizer in a couple of years.

Like other legumes, Wisteria is nitrogen-fixing (meaning it can convert and use atmospheric nitrogen), so it generally doesn’t need a nitrogen fertilizer. However, young plants can benefit from a little extra nitrogen, which encourages foliage growth, so you could use an all-purpose fertilizer. A lot of gardeners use bone meal to feed their Wisteria since it provides mainly phosphorus.

The funny thing with fertilizer is that too much is just as harmful as not enough. If you’ve been using fertilizer on your Wisteria and it isn’t growing, try taking a break from fertilizer and giving the soil a good flush with plenty of water. Excess fertilizer can build up in your soil and cause problems for plants.

We have an entire article dedicated to the topic of fertilizing Wisteria. Find it here.

Tip 7: Prune

Gardeners usually have to prune their Wisteria to keep it from getting too large, but a good pruning can also encourage growth. Pruning encourages branching, as opposed to a few shoots getting really long. Also, if you notice suckers, little starts at the base of the plant, pruning those can help the Wisteria put energy into growing elsewhere.

Tip 8: Give It Something to Climb 

Wisteria is a twining vine, and it likes to climb trellises, arbors, fences, walls, and trees. To help your Wisteria grow taller, give it something vertical to climb up. Just make sure whatever you train your Wisteria to climb on is sturdy, and you don’t mind it getting completely covered within a few years. Find more information on training Wisteria to climb here.

Tip 9: Twine It In the Right Direction 

If you’re training your Wisteria around something, make sure you’re twining it in the right direction. Japanese Wisteria twists in a clockwise direction, while Chinese and American Wisterias twine counter-clockwise. If you twist your Wisteria in the wrong direction, it will have to adjust before it can grow properly.

Tip 10: Plant It In the Ground

If your Wisteria is growing in a container, it may not have enough space or enough nutrients to grow. Wisteria needs deep soil to sink its roots into so it can achieve that voracious growth. While Wisteria can be successfully grown in containers, a too-small container can be a problem.

It is also more important to regularly replenish nutrients in container soil than it is with garden soil. You need to feed container soil with either fertilizer or compost every year. 

If you choose to transplant a container Wisteria to the garden, make sure to follow best practices. Wisteria can be difficult to transplant and doesn’t always respond well.

Which Types of Wisteria Grow the Fastest?

Japanese and Chinese Wisteria varieties are faster growing than American Wisteria varieties. Of course, any plant needs the right conditions to grow well, so choosing the right Wisteria for your climate is essential. Other things being equal; however, Chinese Wisteria (Wisteria Sinensis) is the fastest growing. 

What Conditions are Best for Wisteria?

Wisteria thrives in warm, sunny places with well-drained, moist, neutral to acidic soil. Most varieties can grow in USDA zones 5-9 but do best on the warmer end of that spectrum. The newer Kentucky Wisteria is hardy to zone 3. 

Regardless of the growing zone, Wisteria needs plenty of sun. Full sun is best for blooming and for young plants that are still getting established. Older plants can more easily tolerate part shade, but they need direct sun too. 

Wisteria is flexible about soil type when the provided soil drains fairly well and isn’t alkaline. They also need deep soil to accommodate their large size.

Closing Thoughts

Once you get your Wisteria growing, it’s a good idea to prune it every year, or even twice a year. Make sure there’s plenty of space around the Wisteria to keep it from taking over nearby plants, and don’t plant it next to your house (trust me, you don’t want to deal with that).

With Wisteria, getting it to grow isn’t usually the challenge. Keeping it from growing out of control is a much more common problem. In fact, a Wisteria plant in California covered more than an acre and was awarded a Guinness World Record for its size.

Its rapid growth and spectacular blooms make Wisteria a great choice to train over a pergola, fence, or other structure. Whether you’re creating a shady nook or hiding an eyesore, Wisteria can cover it in no time once it gets going.