If "Blue Moon" is doing so very well in zone 4, then maybe zone 3 isn't such a long shot, though we often just don't get the summer heat units in these parts and I think that does make a difference. I have a large potted "Blue Moon" that had flowered freely this past summer and come spring, will get planted out against the protected south side of the house. I had liked the plant so much that I picked up a second one at a local greenhouse ... the autumn clearance price was a mere 6 or 7 bucks!

Terry

Well, I went ahead and planted Blue Moon last summer. Didn't really amount to much the first summer, of course - we'll see if it survives the winter. It's nicely mulched and protected and under a cozy (and deep) blanket of snow already.

Margaret

My new Blue Moon hasn't done much yet. I wanted to give it a good test this winter, but it's been so mild....-15 F is all we've had so far. The rabbits and deer haven't found it yet, either.

Blue Moon should bloom in any zone if the plants survive, since it produces flowers on new wood, not old wood like the oriental varities. Since it is supposedly good to -40 F., these should hopefully be OK in zone 3. The first year after planting, growth is somewhat slow. The second year from my experience, it grows like mad.

I bought one I think three years ago. Moved it to the new house two years ago. Both summers at the new house, it put out about 20 feet of new growth. No blooms, but I keep hoping!

Good luck dirtyfingernails. Just make sure you don't give it much nitrogen. You might try giving it some fertilizer high in potassium and phosporus and low in nitrogen made for flowering plants or tomatoes. (Course, you probably already knew this.)

I'm itchin to take my "Blue Moon" wisteria out of winter storage and plant it up against the house. Had my camera been working, last summer I would have taken photos of the awesome large flower clusters ... I hope it flowers freely this year.

Terry

One other note regarding growing Wisteria Sinensis (Chinese Wisteria in zone 4). For about 5 years I had two identical Chinese Wisteria growing against a garden shed. Every year they both winter killed down to the roots. Then one year one of the plants took off and grew much larger vines than the other one. That year it did not die back to the ground, even though the other one did. The following year, the one that did not die back really took off and grew vigorously, growing up onto the roof of the shed. Ever since then, it has survived every winter. The other one that did not grow so well is finally starting to do well, and is surviving the winters. I think once they develop a root system big enough to grow larger vines, they have a better chance of surviving our cold winters. Now I'm starting to prune them like many have suggested, similar to a fruiting tree in order to force them to bloom. We'll see what happens in zone 4!

Hello there,

So, has anyone had success with Blue moon wisteria in zone 3? The reason I ask is that this plant now seems more commonly available this year (I even saw it at Superstore) and I wonder if it's worth it? If your plant has survived has it bloomed? Are the leaves attractive enough even without the blooms?

A recent Gardens West featured a garden in Edmonton that has had a Blue Moon for the past five years, so they seem to survive. Not sure if it bloomed for them yet.

Glen, i was at Margaret's house last weekend and i'm pretty sure the wisteria was still alive. I don't remember if she said it bloomed or not, though. I see that follow-ups are being emailed to her, so she'll probably answer herself soon.

Glen, the wisteria lives!
It isn't huge and hasn't bloomed yet, but is full of leaves right now - seems to take a long time to get established. Just realized that it is four years old now.
By the way, its weird - I got an email with Marcia's post but not the previous ones...??

I just planted two Wisteria macrostachya 'Blue Moon' vines, beside a proposed new covered bridge.( I have the poles in the ground).
I was wondering if 6X6X8 foot posts would be strong enough to hold these vines?
I didn't have high phosphorous fertilizer handy so I just planted them in a mixture of sand and soil.The soild is clay about two feet below? Any suggestions?

Now that spring is advancing, does anyone wish to report on the progress of their Blue Moon wisteria in zone 3 ?

Superstore has a nice stock of strong healthy Blue Moon.

rosea2k, those supports will indeed be more than strong enough!

Terry

Mine came back. I planted it super-late last year, I don't think it was even in the ground two weeks before that horrible frost in October happened. My MIL's is much further along.

I talked to an employee at one of the garden centres, she's had one for five years.

Count me in on the "Wisteria in cold zones" experiment. I purchased one last month from Superstore. Definitely healthy and decent sized. Felt sorry for it as it stood in the pot for the past month until I decided where to plant it.

It sounds like it will definitely outgrow my trellis, but then I plan to train it along the fence and maybe up the carport. As for it blooming, maybe they need to be a certain age? The nursery tag doesn't really address that. I love the foliage though, tropical-like.

By the way, My (five or) six year old arctic beauty kiwi (male) has just started to get it's colorful pink/white/green leaves this spring. That nursery tag said the plant may not get it's colorful foliage until after year two and I had given up on it getting colorful foliage. It definitely is growing faster as it gets older too.

Glen

I am growing 3 'Blue Moon' wisteria vines that are going on their 4th year. There are a couple hundred racemes this year that are just starting to flower. We had a warmer than normal winter, but it still got down past -20 F. I had no winter die back of ANY vines on my 'Blue Moon' plants. However, my 2 chinese wisteria plants that I've had for about 15 years had serious die back, even though they have come through colder winters before.

Hi everyone I've had 2 "Blue moon"Wisteria for the last two years in ONE GAL POTS buried in the ground over the last winter. they are both growing quickly and I'll have to find a spot at the new place to permamantly put them' The pics of the blooms looks wonderful.
Take care Lois

How did people's 'Blue Moon' wisteria do this summer? Mine had grown vigorously, though with the summer being so very cool, the new growth was very green and unripe when hard frost had arrived the other night ... so, I had protected it from such. The plant had given one bloom cluster in early summer and I recently could see new clusters forming that would have flowered had we received any real warmth this summer. I'm yet unsure of how well this plant is suited to this climate when it doesn't get the chance to properly harden off.

Terry

Congrats Terry on having what all of us want - a wisteria blossom.

My plant was new this year, but even so it's now covering a six foot high trellis and beyond. We had a bit of frost last night, though being right against the fence it may not have been affected (some plants frozen were in the centre of the yard.) I haven't checked if the wood on it is ripe yet, but some plants don't seem to ripen their wood until late.

Anyone planning on winter protection? From what I gather winter may kill the plant to snow/ground level?

Regards,
Glen

I'm sure my plant will freeze bad badly if these green stems soon do not harden up. Last winter, I had laid the plant down to the ground where it had been heaped over with snow and came through very well ... though, late summer of 2009 had been very hot and the plant well hardened off, this summer was so dang coooool in Alberta! I'll again lay the wisteria down, as its little problem to do so and will likely help maintain much more wood than if I left it standing.

Even without blooms, the foliage looks GREAT!

A single and much appreciated bloom :)

Wow, mine's just a little baby. That thing's quite big!

Wanted to now ask folks how their 'Blue Moon' wisteria had managed to survive the winter? This heat ( 28 C today ) has certainly kicked my plant into gear and it's throwing all kinds of new growth and even a few flower buds here and there.

Terrance

I'm on Long Island in NY and would love to create a Tuscan feel to back yard dining...so I am going to give Wisteria a try along a back fence...sending out a thank you to everyone's tips...will keep you posted. Not sure what my zone is, our winters run 15-30 degrees F, when cold, for the most part.

From the zone map, it appears that Long Island is zone 7, unless you're smack dab in the middle...in which case it is zone 6b.
After reading this thread, I think I'm going to have to find a Blue Moon wisteria!

Nonie ... wisteria will be an absolute breeze to establish in your climate, as compared to the Canadian prairie. You'll also be able to select from a long list of varieties.

My 'Blue Moon' wisteria has been very enjoyable this season. Although, it has not given me a heck of a lot of blooms, these have been large and sweetly fragrant. The plant is a beauty well worth the additional attention given to it.

My wisteria is now in its third season and it isn't doing very much. It it bushy and healthy, but even now in July it's only about a foot tall. To be fair to the plant, it was transplanted after surviving the first winter, so it's not exactly fully established. I'm not really disappointed however, I find it very neat that I'm able to grow the plant at all and I'm sure it will do better with time.

Wow, Terry - NICE !!!

The wisteria as of today as it nears full bloom Unfortunately, the photos always make the flowers appear smaller than what they actually are. Despite being touted as zone 3 hardy, apparently few are having success with this plant on the Canadian prairies (please let me know otherwise!) I do coddle it rather much, though it's a small price to pay for the enjoyment it brings to us and the surprise delight of visitors.

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That wisteria is gorgeous!

Mine is history - it didn't survive the winter before last.

I planted two 'Blue Moon' wisteria last year. Both of them died back to almost the group level. Now one of them has a shoot of a foot long. The other one has only 3 leaves.

The problem with wisteria is it requires a long WARM growing season, otherwise the new growth is left unripened and freezes off. 'Blue Moon' is claimed to have been tested hardy to -40, though apparently only under certain conditions. Because the vine is so flexible, I lay the thing down and cover over with just a bit of peat moss, the ripened wood easily winters over, though the green stuff perishes.

Terry your wisteria is amazing!!! I cant believe you are having success with it in the Edmonton area. Did you buy it as a fairly large plant??? The reason I am asking is because I bought my Blue Moon as a smaller/medium sized plant and I think its only flowered the following spring only. Mine seems to die to ground almost every year and I am about to pull it out cause there is no point in having it if it doesnt flower.

Also, how are your butterfly bushes doing? My other one died again!!! I can only seem to keep them for 1-2 years. They are not very hardy! However I do not mulch them just put copious amounts of snow...

Okay, better lighting in these photos to show the wisteria to proper effect.

Andre, yes, the plant was about 4 ft tall when I received it via mail order many years back and had flowered that same year. I had grown it for about three years in a large pot and stored in the cold room for winter and then it was planted at the new place. 'Blue Moon' wisteria definitely requires pampering in our climate and not something I'd recommend to those not up for the challenge.

I've only kept buddleia 'Pink Delight' and it's doing better this year than last.

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Another hardy wisteria is Aunt Dee. I happened to see it at a fall clearance, sitting alone and looking neglected, so I made the purchase. Unfortunately, the evergreens and bushes kept me so busy with my short planting time that I forgot about the little wisteria pot. It looked dried out by the end of the growing season, so I left it out by the fence, not having the heart to throw it into the trash. Spring came, I was certain that it is now dead and that I wouldn't feel guilty throwing it away. Upon closer inspection, though, the main stalk (perhaps 3/4 of a pencil size) seemed to have green underneath while the other two tiny vines were completely dry. I pruned it all down to about 6" and now it's growing like mad! I am so impressed with its hardiness... surviving a MN winter while still left sitting in its original 7" pot... that I am now pampering it. I hope it won't take too many years to flower. Nevertheless, it is a keeper just for its gorgeous leaves and amazing resiliency!

There are other new hardier wisterias. Newly developed Summer Cascade is claimed to be the hardiest of them all by Growing Shrubs and Small Trees in Cold CLimates by Debbie Lonnee, Nancy Rose, Don Selinger, John Whitman. Another, hardier than Blue Moon but not as hardy as Summer Cascade is Carol Mackii which is a white variety. I cannot find a source yet, probably next year as they are very new.

I wonder if there are any experts out there who could tell me if it were possible to cross the Wisteria frutescens var macrostchya (Blue Moon, etc, types) with Wisteria sinensis or florabunda to improve fragrance and length of racaeme? I would love to know if they were breeding compatable!

Hello iowagirl2 ... Thank you for mentioning of the new wisteria varieties. Apparently, from my experience and that of others, summers on the Canadian prairie are too short for wisteria to harden off prior to the onset of cold and thus sustain substantial or fatal winterkill. I've heard some folks claiming firsthand experience of seeing large thriving vines on the prairie, though such has not been substantiated to myself or have proven to be a different type of vine altogether.

As for the hybridization between different species of wisteria, I can only speculate that such is possible, though such a question posted in a warmer zone forum will likely yield your correct answer. Thanks again for popping in, I just might now be on the outlook for a 'Summer Cascade' wisteria to pamper :).

Terrance

Terry, your Wisteria is gorgeous!! I see this post is from 4 years ago; is it still living?
I am from southern Saskatchewan and have purchased 2 Blue Moon vines from Lowes this spring. They have grown 5 feet and about 8 feet this summer.
May I ask how you wintered them?

Hi beal_17 ... the wisteria had gotten very large and stretched out a total of 45 ft in two directions. In the autumn of 2014, after taking the vine down for the winter and applying protection, the darn mice had gotten to it and chewed it up badly and the next spring I needed to cut it back severely. Then, as the summer progressed, I decided that I hadn't liked the way the thing was looking and thought best to cut it right off at the base in hopes it would resprout ... though, it hadn't liked me doing so and the remaining stump had rotted down to the roots. Last summer, I started anew with a large on sale plant from CT.

Again, I'll stress that this vine is not hardy for the Canadian prairies, or at least I've never seen photos or heard word of anyone having it eat up and consume the side of their home. This past winter was very mild and I'm sure many vines had wintered very well with no protection whatsoever, though a normal winter will more than likely knock them right back down. What I had learnt was to keep the thing growing as late in the autumn as possible by protecting it from severe frost, planting next to a building is a good idea. When taking it down in preparation of winter, snip off all remaining foliage that has not yet fallen along with green unhardened wood. I've had good success when covering the vine with about 3 or 4 inches of dry peat moss and placing a sheet of plastic upon the area to help keep it dry. Vines are very flexible until reaching a sizable thickness and can be wrapped up around themselves, though do not force them otherwise they might snap ... and be sure the darn mice have been dealt with! :)

Im sorry to hear that!
Thank you very much for the information!
I would love to see your progress on your new vine. It gives me some hope lol

Here's a small "Aunt Dee" wisteria I'm training into a tree.

Pretty amazing!!!! Thanks for sharing the photos!

I have had my Blue Moon Wisteria for 2 years now. Every year, it will come back with lots of foliage, but so far, it has not bloomed at all.... what do I need to do to get it to bloom!? Sigh...

@ostrich do you take it down and cover it for the winter? from what I read, our hard winters kill the buds so we need to take extra care to protect it.

Here is what Terry suggested for our harsh climate:

"Twros(z 4 Ab. Can.)

Hi beal_17 ... the wisteria had gotten very large and stretched out a total of 45 ft in two directions. In the autumn of 2014, after taking the vine down for the winter and applying protection, the darn mice had gotten to it and chewed it up badly and the next spring I needed to cut it back severely. Then, as the summer progressed, I decided that I hadn't liked the way the thing was looking and thought best to cut it right off at the base in hopes it would resprout ... though, it hadn't liked me doing so and the remaining stump had rotted down to the roots. Last summer, I started anew with a large on sale plant from CT.

Again, I'll stress that this vine is not hardy for the Canadian prairies, or at least I've never seen photos or heard word of anyone having it eat up and consume the side of their home. This past winter was very mild and I'm sure many vines had wintered very well with no protection whatsoever, though a normal winter will more than likely knock them right back down. What I had learnt was to keep the thing growing as late in the autumn as possible by protecting it from severe frost, planting next to a building is a good idea. When taking it down in preparation of winter, snip off all remaining foliage that has not yet fallen along with green unhardened wood. I've had good success when covering the vine with about 3 or 4 inches of dry peat moss and placing a sheet of plastic upon the area to help keep it dry. Vines are very flexible until reaching a sizable thickness and can be wrapped up around themselves, though do not force them otherwise they might snap ... and be sure the darn mice have been dealt with! :)"

Beal_17, I did, I did! I did what Twros recommended and put down the branches to somewhere closer to the ground, and then covered them with leaves and things for winter protection. The branches wintered OK but then I just didn't get flowers on the plant.... sigh!

Its too bad our Canadian climate just seems to be too harsh. I was hoping for some genetically modified version to come out, that will thrive here :/

Ostrich, is your wisteria in full sunlight? You might try giving it some Phosphate fertilizer. Once it begins blooming, after the blooms fade and it starts producing been pods, I cut off all of the pods. Doing this gives it extra strength to produce flowers the following year. I've also got a second, smaller "second" crop of blossoms that are flowering now. Good luck!

Just bought one and have not planted yet. I live in Nova Scotia near the ocean and we have rough winters. Any advice appreciated. I so want to have this blossom over my porch some day. Can you plant Blue Moon near a foundation?

Hi Glenda. A foundation should be OK. You might want to add some peat moss or other organic material to the soil to counteract the leaching of the alkali from your concrete, or add some iron chelate if it starts turning yellow, but in your acidic soil it might not be a problem. Out west we usually add more organic components to our soil as well as iron, since out soil tends to be just a little bit alkali versus acidic.

Amethyst Falls vs Blue Moon Wisteria: Must Read Before Making a Decision