Japanese wisteria sports the longest flower
racemes of any wisteria; Some of those cultivars can reach 2 m (7 ft) in length.[4][5] These racemes burst into clustered white, pink, violet, or blue flowers in early- to mid-
spring. The flowers carry a fragrance similar to that of
grapes. The early flowering time of Japanese wisteria can cause problems in
temperate climates, where early
frosts can destroy the coming years' flowers. It will also flower only after passing from
juvenile to
adult stage, a transition that may take many years just like its cousin
Chinese wisteria.
Japanese wisteria can grow over 30 metres (98 ft) long over many supports via powerful
clockwise-twining stems. The foliage consists of shiny, dark-green,
pinnately compound leaves 10–30 centimetres (3.9–11.8 in) in length. The leaves bear about 15-19 oblong
leaflets[6] that are each 2–6 centimetres (0.79–2.36 in) long. It also bears
poisonous, brown, velvety, bean-like seed pods 5–10 centimetres (2.0–3.9 in) long that mature in summer and persist until winter. Japanese wisteria prefers moist soils and full sun in
USDA plant hardiness zones 5–9.[7] The plant often lives over 50 years.
'Lawrence' agm[13] – pale violet flowers, deeper violet keel and wings
'Longissima Kyushaku' – mauve-purple flowers on a raceme up to 6 ft (1.8 m)[14] or even 7 feet (2.1 m)[15] in length. 'Kyushaku' means '9 shaku', referring to an archaic Japanese unit of measurement; in the
International System of Units, 9 shaku translates to a length of 2.72 m (8.9 ft). The origin of this cultivar is a 1200 year-old wisteria tree in Ushijima,
Kasukabe City, which had racemes about 3 m (9.8 ft) long in the
Meiji period. Also known as 'Murasaki naga fuji' or Noda naga fuji'.[5][16]
'Macrobotrys' or 'Longissima' – reddish-violet flower clusters 1 m (3.3 ft) or longer
'Macrobotrys Cascade' – white and pinkish-purple flowers, vigorous grower
'Nana Richins Purple' – purple flowers
'Nishiki' – variegated foliage
'Plena' or 'Violaceae Plena' – double blue flowers in dense clusters
'Praecox' or 'Domino' – purple flowers
'Purpurea' – unknown; may be Wisteria sinensis 'Consequa', sometimes labeled purpurea
'Rubra' – unknown; may be 'Honbeni' – sometimes labeled as Rubrum – deep pink to red flowers
'Shiro-noda' (W. floribunda f' alba) agm[17] – long white flower clusters
'Texas Purple' – may be a sinensis or a hybrid, short racemes, purple flowers, produced while the plant is still young
A great wisteria tree (藤, fuji) blossoms at
Ashikaga Flower Park [
ja] in
Ashikaga, Tochigi,
Japan. The largest wisteria in Japan, it is dated to 1870 and covered approximately 1,990 square metres (21,400 sq ft) as of May 2008[update].