How To Prune Wisteria (Video)

Like so many ornamental plants, Wisteria has two types of wood: the main, thick, eventually woody vines, which are the support structure, and much thinner side shoots (laterals) coming off it, which carry all the flowers. 

The main purpose of yearly pruning is to maximise the flowering at the base of the side shoots, by removing the excess, whippy, leafy growth at the end of those side shoots, which won't flower.

When to Prune Wisteria?

The Essential Winter Prune:

Wisteria should always be pruned in winter to early spring (January to February is good, but anytime when the leaves are off is fine too), when there are no frosts forecast for at least 48 hours. 

The side shoots (which carry the flowers) must be cut back to 2-3 buds from the main, woody stem.

If you are wondering "why hasn't my Wisteria flowered?", the most common reason is that it wasn't pruned around this time!

The Recommended Summer Prune / Tidy Up:

During summer, when the flowers have finished, trimming those flower-bearing side shoots down to 5-6 buds from the main stem. 
If you miss this trim one year, it's fine, the winter pruning is adequate, but it is highly recommended for best performance (and for controlling this vigorous vine in a cosy garden!).

Summer is also the time to extend any main stems by leaving well-placed shoot/s untrimmed, and tying them into the support framework.

How to Prune Wisteria?

This beautifully short video by the RHS shows you how to carry out both summer and winter pruning.

You will need some garden secateurs (known as snips round here), and if cutting out large main stems, a set of bypass loppers is usually sufficient - very old wood will need a pruning saw.