Wisteria

[retired]

I planted wisteria in my yard approximately 25 years ago. About 5 years ago I dug it up and planted a flower garden where it was. Wisteria keeps coming up in the flower bed and just pulling the shoots up does't work. In a few days it is right back. Any ideas on how I can get rid of the wisteria?

[Ron B]

If not willing/able to keep cutting frequently until starved out, then probably have to spray or paint regrowth with appropriate herbicide. Ask at nursery for suitable product.

[retired]

Thanks I will try that

[Newt]

Hi Retired,

The roots of wisteria are similar to the Campsis radicans I had to deal with. When I moved into this house 18 years ago as a renter, I inherited a trumpet vine - campsis radicans. Here's my horror story and what I've learned about this vine. Over time the vine began to bloom and pop up everywhere in the yard. I would pull the sprouts only to find more year after year. After 13 years we purchased the house and had to cut down 5 trees and regrade the land due to overplanting and flooding. When we dug up the stumps from the trees and regraded we discovered roots of the vine 3' to 4' deep in the soil, up to 30' from the parent plant and as large around as my wrist! We dug and dug and, well you get the point. A year later we still had sprouts coming up from bits of roots that we'd missed.

Here is how I've learned you can get rid of it. Now, up until this point I had NEVER used herbicides or pesticides in the garden. Here's what I did and you can do to get rid of it. Put about an inch of Round Up Weed and Grass Killer Super Concentrate (you could also use Brush B Gone) in a clear plastic container with a tight fitting lid like you might get at the deli with potato salad. Cut a slit in the lid and insert the tips of the vine in the solution when in active growth (has leaves on it and the leaves need to be in the solution). Leave the vines in the solution for 48 hours and then cut the vines near the lid. To remove the vine from the lid, be sure and take the container to a safe place so that no solution splashes on anything precious. You can reuse the solution until it is all absorbed. Everytime I find a new sprout I do this same procedure. So far there have been no sprouts from areas that were treated this way.

Good luck!
Newt

[petauridae]

WoW....that's brutal! Sounds like it is very effective, though!

[Newt]

Brutal is having it pop up in all your flower beds year after year after year, grow up the garden wall with those holdfasts and pop up in your neighbors' gardens too. That's brutal.

Newt

[petauridae]

Wisteria doesn't have holdfasts...its a twiner. You must be talking about Trumpet creeper. Trumpet flyer would be a better name!

[Newt]

Petauridae, yes I was referring to the trumpet vine when I mentioned the holdfasts, since the comment was made about my technique of dealing with trumpet vine being brutal. Thankfully, I haven't had to personally deal with wisteria.

Newt

[petauridae]

I've got my three wisterias in containers. One (very deep) container has the bottom cut out and is buried, but that wisteria is a floribunda not sinensis. I've heard floribunda is less vigourous.

[Newt]

Petauridae, you said, "One (very deep) container has the bottom cut out and is buried, but that wisteria is a floribunda not sinensis. I've heard floribunda is less vigourous." Any idea where you heard that?
http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/fact/wist1.htm

From this site:
http://www.invasive.org/eastern/eppc/japwisteria.html

"Grubbing: This method is appropriate for small initial populations or environmentally sensitive areas where herbicides cannot be used. Using a pulaski or similar digging tool, remove the entire plant, including all roots and runners. Juvenile plants can be hand pulled depending on soil conditions and root development. Any portions of the root system not removed may resprout. All plant parts, including mature fruit, should be bagged and disposed of in a trash dumpster to prevent reestablishment."

From this site:
http://www.se-eppc.org/manual/japwisteria.html

"Mechanical Control

Cutting: Cut climbing or trailing vines as close to the root collar as possible. This technique is feasible on small populations, as a pretreatment on large impenetrable sites, in areas where a herbicide cannot be used, or if labor resources are not sufficient to adequately implement herbicidal control. This treatment will prevent seed production and strangulation of surrounding woody vegetation. Wisteria will resprout unless cut so frequently that its root stores are exhausted. Treatment should begin early in the growing season and be repeated at two-week intervals until autumn."

Note: All bold print is my notation.

Newt

[petauridae]

Hmm....not sure where I heard/read that. I'll have a look around. Maybe it is the American wisteria that was being referred to (but not stated as such or maybe I was confused at the time).

All my containers are large, but the deep pot is the largest. I'm really bad at judging distances, but I would say that it is at least 18" deep if not more.

One other thing to remember, I live in the rain shadow in Washington. It doesn't rain between May and Sept. so some plants that are rampant elsewhere are a bit more controlled here. It also gets down to 0 degrees F frequently during the winter.

Having said all that I have seen both a trumpet vine infestation and a chinese wisteria infestation in my area and I have seen several non-infestations (with wisteria being quite favoured in the latter).

[Newt]

Petauridae, as I stated I have never personally dealt with wisteria, but I do know that the roots of the trumpet vine were 3' deep in the soil and as big around as my wrist after all those years. I have heard that the root system is similar. I think it was on a Victory Garden program on PBS.

I think you are correct that the American wisteria is the one that isn't invasive.

Newt

[petauridae]

Newt--

I know from my friend's yard that your observations about trumpet vine are absolutely correct. His neighbour's vine comes up everywhere in his yard too. That's one of the reasons why I didn't go with those.

I think I have 'located' where I read that about floribunda vs. sinensis. I think it was in an Ortho book or something like that that I saw in a bookstore, but did not buy.

[liabean]

**Sorry, put the post on wrong thread the first time. Now it's in the correct spot***
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Newt,

Thank you very much for this tip on killing Chinese Wisteria. If I can't find a good organic solution, I'm going to try yours. My situation is slightly different.

Three years ago we moved into a house with a beautiful but old deck & arbor. It looks like many years ago, one of the previous owners planted Chinese Wisteria on each post of the arbor to have the vine grow on top. The trunk of one of the vines is approx. 8in diameter. Yes, it's huge. Since I've been trying to follow an organic regimen for my garden for the last 3 years, I've learned to become one with the Wisteria and to have patience.

The replacing of the deck has been a sudden change, since it was becoming a death trap and has not given me enough time to react to treating the wisteria problem. The deck man has already leveled the wisteria trunks to the ground so I do not have any vines to leave soaking for 48 hours, yet I have a drill and some rope and will try a similar wicking mechanism to allow the roots to fully absorb the solution with minimal contamination of the surrounding soil and plant life.

If you have any more helpful tips for my situation, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks again for the good tip,

Lia

[Newt]

Lia, maybe this organic solution will work for you.
http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=50

Newt

[liabean]

Newt,

I have heard of this method, yet word through the vine (no pun intended) is that Wisteria is a bit more tricky than a tree stump, and since one of the stumps, will be covered by the decking, I need to make sure that is taken care of. I think I'll try the organic way with Howard Garrett's solution but add a strong Vinegar solution to the "food stuffings". If it doesn't work, I can always have that part of the deck pryed up for a more toxic solution. (Don't worry, it's just a step, I won't have to rip up a large part.)

I write back and let you know how it goes.

Thanks again,
Lia

[liabean]

Well, it's a year later and the vinegar solution did not work. It's sprouting everywhere. I'm now going to try a herbicide.

-Lia

[Newt]

Lia, try the method I posted on October 14, 2006. That works for just about anything!

Newt