SIERRA MADRE WISTERIA PLANT...ONE OF THE WONDERS OF THE PLANT WORLD!Saw an amazing sight today....Bonnie and I drove up to Sierra Madre and saw very beautiful and historic Wisteria plant. I had heard about the Wisteria way back in the late 1960's when I worked at Monrovia Nursery in Azusa, but had not had the opportunity to see it until today.
A little background about the Wisteria. It was planted in the year 1894 shortly after the home in Sierra Madre was built. The story says that the woman who owned the home drove her horse and buggy to Monrovia and bought the Wisteria plant for 75 cents! The house was later sold and the new owner built trellises for the Wisteria to climb on, and it thrived...it thrived so much that it eventually grew into he walls and fireplace of the home and caused the roof to collapse! A new home was built 200 feet north of the original home, and the Wisteria was still nurtured, but trained to grow away from the new home. Even back then, the Wisteria was a popular attraction when it was in full bloom, and many people came from around the area to enjoy the beauty of the very large and beautiful Wisteria plant. Eventually the property was sub-divided and another home built but was connected by the Wisteria. Now once a year the owners of the two homes allow visitors to come and walk through the backyards so the Wisteria can be viewed by the many people who appreciate the beauty and magnitude of this very large plant.
Guinness Book of World Records has named this Wisteria to be the World's largest flowering plant! It is estimated that at the height of the bloom time, it has 1.5 million blossoms with 40 blossoms per square foot. It weights 250 tons and the branches extend 500 feet out from the original planting spot. It covers an area of about 1 acre.
When I was working at Monrovia Nursery Co. in Azusa, back in the mid to late 1960's, the Wisteria plant was showing signs of decline, and someone from Sierra Madre asked if anyone from the nursery could help save the plant. A few people from the nursery went and looked at the Wisteria and it was determined that the roots were in a weakened state and that was the cause of the decline. The nursery folks planted several 5 gallon Wisterias around the trunk of the plant and let them establish for a year, and then went back with the best grafters that the nursery had and they grafted the stems from the 5 gallon plants into the main trunk, to offer additional healthy roots to help support the vine...it's called a 'nurse' graft. It must have helped as 40 years later the Wisteria is still doing fine!
The only downer about the visit today, was that it was pouring rain and so it was difficult to really linger and enjoy the beauty and history of such a magnificent plant! It also drove the craft fair away from the downtown area of Sierra Madre, so Bonnie wasn't able to look through the many vendors booths to see what treasures she might encounter in such a place. We will however, be watching the website http://www.sierramadrechamber.com/wistaria/photos.htm for the date when we can go back next year to see this wonderful plant once again, and hopefully it will be nicer weather! Check the website above so you can read more about this amazing attraction that is practically right in our own backyard!
Thanks for taking the time to read this post!
Ron, the Plant Man
