When Peter and I moved with our family to the South Burnett in 2003 we planted a few vegetables and fruit trees to begin our garden. We had previously enjoyed the abundance of home grown and the feeling of sharing our garden with family and friends. Sometimes it was fruit or herbs and of course the gifting and swapping of cuttings. From then on it was tree planting for birds, bees, butterflies, other pollinating insects and shade. I feel the most beautiful tree we have planted here suited to our often frosty and dry area, is the Tree Wisteria (Bolusanthus speciosus). It is a protected species in South Africa where it’s native, meaning that no naturalised trees can be removed.
The cascading flowers, sweet fragrance and upright shape are really nice features of the Tree Wisteria. Eventually the tree reaches four to six metres over a ten year span, depending on your soil type; ours is quite sandy. Though I feel that with the recent rain and better soil you could achieve an even faster growing start. Just a few weeks ago I wrote about “Growing edibles in Containers” and I’m imagining that these trees would be spectacular and smaller growing in a pot, perhaps placed on a verandah. Showing off the gorgeous cascading flowers so close would be especially beautiful. They could also make a striking Bonsai.
Sometimes it’s hard to find a spectacular small shade tree. For me, it ticks off a lot of my boxes. Bolusanthus is also an ideal street tree as it has a non invasive root system and is upright and slender in growth. In the garden they love a full sun position and with regular watering to establish they are really drought tolerant (and yes we have tested this thoroughly in the past).
The gorgeous purple flowers are displayed over the spring and summer months from around August to January. I’m feeling so grateful to have found such a beautiful tree suitable for our South Burnett climate and especially pleased that it that can withstand frosts. If you decide you want one, we do have them available in small pots at Ramesa Nursery. Perhaps you will enjoy this tree too and for a couple of weeks at the end of winter the leaves will fall before the beautiful new growth and flowering in spring.
Some great news for your soil is that it’s a nitrogen fixing plant (with the pea-like purple flowers being the clue for this). The Bolusanthus bark is dark in colour, contrasting beautifully with the light green leaves and bright flowers. The Tree Wisteria is normally multi-stemmed, however it can also be pruned into a single stem. We have left our tree to develop the naturally beautiful shape. It’s a fantastic tree in my opinion and suitable for small gardens; ideally in an area where a splash of colour can be seen. What a wonderful tree characterising drought hardiness, frost tolerance and sprays of purple flowers that can be up to 30 cm long during spring and early summer. I love too that they’re fragrant and attractive to birds, bees and butterflies.
Happy Gardening; kind regards, Romaine