"Neale" wrote in message
...
After a few very successful years, my wisteria is having a horrid spring.

It has a few leaves dotted all over, so I know it's alive, but instead of
flowers it has a smattering of dry, husky catkin-like "flowers" - no
bigger
than acorns, all over. I didn't prune it at all in the last 12 months
(shame
on me).

I thought they were meant to be pretty hardy - it's on a SE facing wall in
Shropshire. Might this be the result of a late March/Early April hard
frost,
or is there something more sinster going on??


The leaf situation is normal, the flowers have almost certainly been caught
by frost. Wisteria itself is very hardy (down to -30c) but the flowers are
not, which is why they recommend growing them on south or west walls to
protect from spring frost.
Lack of water can cause flowers to fail but in that case they normally drop
right off.
--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collection of Clematis viticella (cvs)