Wisteria floribunda Lipstick

Wisteria floribunda Lipstick is a beautiful variety of Japanese wisteria, which is vigorous, floriferous and fragrant. It offers an abundance of long clusters of pastel flowers washed with light mauve pink and tinged with purple on a creamy white background in late spring. They bloom among its young pale green foliage. Its development, moderate compared to its gigantic cousin the Chinese wisteria (Wisteria sinensis), is an asset in gardens of moderate size. This variety, magnificent on a pergola or a trellis, can easily be trained as a bush.

The Japanese wisteria Lipstick is sometimes marketed under the names Kuchi-Beni, Carnea or Peaches and Cream. It comes from the Wisteria floribunda, native to Japan. All these plants belong to the Fabaceae family. 'Lipstick', like its ancestor, is a robust plant, resistant to cold, not very demanding in terms of soil (although it doesn't like excess limestone), and capable of growing in poor and dry soils in summer if they are deep. Its roots are deep and trailing.

The twining stems of this Lipstick wisteria reach about 6-7m (20-23ft) in length and wrap spontaneously around supports in a clockwise direction. The growth of new shoots is very rapid, about 2m (7ft) in the space of one season in moist soil. Flowering takes place a little after that of the Chinese wisterias, in May-June, on plants aged 3 years and older. It develops on already leafy branches located not far from the main lignified stems. It takes the form of pendulous clusters of butterfly-like flowers, measuring up to 45cm (18in) in length. The flowers open successively, from the base to the tip of the cluster. After the flowers, pendulous, flat and green pods appear, turning brown when ripe. The young green-grey leaves appear before flowering and then take on a light green colour. They are 20 to 30cm (8 to 12in) long and divided into 13 to 15 ovate leaflets, giving the foliage a light appearance. Before falling in autumn, the leaves take on a beautiful golden colour. Very durable, the Lipstick Wisteria can live well over 50 years. Its flowers are nectar-rich.

The 'Lipstick' Japanese wisteria is a very romantic plant, a queen in the realm of climbing plants capable of transforming many vertical surfaces. This graceful and lively plant is particularly useful for dressing up a wall or covering an unsightly fence. It wraps itself around a trellis or the branches of a bush without restraint if left to its own devices and tends to smother surrounding plants. It prefers a solitary situation, in full sun or partial shade in a warm climate. Or associate it with vigorous honeysuckles, clematis or climbing roses.