We had one wisteria that had been neglected on the back fence, but as you know that does not stop wisteria – in fact they thrive on neglect but it did not seem to flower! There was also one on the back verandah that is held up by chains – it looks like Purple Rain!
So once we had the birch forest we clearly had to have one of Edna Walling’s favorite features – a Colonnade. Edna Walling loved to put in colonnades and the wisteria is an obvious choice as they are so vigorous and when in flower provide a beautiful show. Many discussions and pictures later, Scott Brown said “yes, he would give it a crack – sort of like a fancy pergola”. So he built it – and then he fine tuned it, added more wire, draped the wisteria over it and guess what – Yes it was a Wisteria Colonnade!I
It has been a couple of years in the making but yes the Wisteria Colonnade is now complete. It fits into the garden in scale and provides the feature against the back boundary where 5 Scarlet ash grow.
Mary-lou Pittard’s tiles on the floor are perfect and sitting on the seat looking down over the garden is peaceful and rewarding in the early morning.
There is a second wisteria which is just as spectacular which grows along the back verandah and is opposite to The Bank.
In July 2013 we decided to remove everything from the bank and start again. There was nothing really growing and the soil was very poor.
First we had to clear away the existing trees and weeds. Trav’s Trees came with their chainsaws and this was the first of many visits to maintain and manage trees at Uccello Lane.
By late spring in 2019 after the hot summer we had some good rainfall – and “The Bank” was lush. Everything was in flower the wisteria, Pom Pom trees, lily pilli’s to bring the birds and lavender.
“The Bank” is viewed from the study, the craft room or the conservatory. It is always on show – but it was not always this way – in fact the exact opposite!. The wisteria on the Veranda is like purple lace – it takes your breath away as you come out the back door. It does attract bees and birds make their nest but that does not matter – it is worth it!
Uccello Lane 