Wisteria floribunda

The Japanese wisteria is in the pea or Fabaceae family and is native to Japan but has been introduced widely into other countries. It can grow to 30 m long over many supports.

• It is deciduous, with pinnately compound, shiny, dark-green leaves up to 30 cm in length with 9-13 oblong leaflets that are each 2–6 cm long.; it is a woody climber, twisting anticlockwise, requiring support when grown as an ornamental, often being trained to grow up a tree or along a wall or a pergola.
• The flowering habit of Japanese wisteria is perhaps the most spectacular of the Wisteria genus, with the longest flower racemes of any wisteria, reaching up to 0.5 m in length, with racemes displaying long trails of clustered white, pink, violet, or blue flowers in early to mid-spring. The flowers carry a distinctive fragrance similar to that of grapes.
• Seed pods are felted, green, turning brown, 5–10 cm long, containing bean-like seeds which are toxic if injested, pods maturing in summer and persisting until winter.