Vancouver is spectacular in spring! The blooming season is very long and you can enjoy a rotation of flowers starting as early as mid-February. Cherry blossoms definitely steal the spotlight in April. In early May, however, another hype-worthy bloom caught my eye. It turns out, Vancouver has quite a bit of wisteria and it thrives in the PNW climate. I could not find any online guides about wisteria season in Vancouver, so I have created my own post about the best places to spot these fragrant photogenic blossoms in the city.
Rosemary Brown Lane behind the Safeway on Robson Street
The green wall in the alleyway behind the Safeway on the corner of Robson and Denman streets is actually a wisteria! It was spotted by my partner by accident on his run through the Rosemary Brown Lane one day. The wisteria climbs the length of wall for nearly an entire block and there’s a narrow sidewalk next to it. This is not a pretty alleyway otherwise, so expect a little bit of trash. But, there are few people and cars so you can spend a lot of time with the wisteria uninterrupted.
Emery Barnes Park in Yaletown
The four pergolas in the corner of the Emery Barnes park at the intersection of Davie and Richards streets are covered in lush vines of wisteria. We spotted a few stray blossoms here late in October last year. We came back on May 1st this spring and the blooming was well under way on two of the pergolas. There were still many unopened and young flower buds on the two other pergolas, so I anticipate the wisteria here will bloom well into the end of the month.
VanDusen Botanical Garden
I found several spots at Vancouver’s VanDusen Botanical Garden where you can spot wisteria.
First, there is a pergola over a bench in the south-west corner of the garden — tucked away between the Meadow Ponds and the Alma VanDusen garden. The wisteria vine took over the pergola and the nearby tree.
Second, the roof of the Shaughnessy restaurant’s patio inside the botanical garden houses a larger wisteria vine. A tree nearby was taken over by another smaller vine.
Third, the Lath House by the great lawn is covered in wisteria vine. I did not make it to the gardens in time for peak bloom this year, but I imagine it’s a remarkable sight.
Lastly, there is a small white wisteria vine by a bench inside the Fragrance Garden right in front of the Shaughnessy Restaurant. This vine bloomed much earlier than other ones inside the garden this year.
In Your Own Neighbourhood
I started to spot wisteria climbing up on homes and small sidewalk gardens around the West End of Vancouver. Keep an eye on the vines around your own neighbourhood in late April and May and you just might realize they are wisteria plants.
I also found this image of blooming wisteria in Fleetwood Park in Surrey on Instagram. Looks like this is quite a photogenic spot with the locals!
Common spots for wisteria plants are patios, archways, outdoor garages, and even light posts!
