Take the Cuttings

• Softwood cuttings are taken from a healthy, mature wisteria vine when the young vines are just beginning to mature. Softwood cuttings are flexible enough to bend easily but hard enough to break with a snap. To take cuttings, use a sharp knife or garden shears to cut a 4- to 6-inch stem tip. Take the cuttings early in the morning, or a day or two after a rain, as the vine will be plump and well-hydrated. Keep the cuttings cool and moist until planting time.
  
  

Prepare to Plant the Cuttings

• Fill a container with a lightweight, well-drained rooting media, such as an equal mixture of perlite and sand or vermiculite and sand. Water the rooting media, and set it aside to drain. The rooting media should be moist but never soggy. Although commercial planting containers work well, any clean container is fine for planting wisteria cuttings, as long as the container has a hole in the bottom.
  
  

Plant the Cuttings

• Remove the leaves and buds from the bottom half of the wisteria stem, and dip the end of the cuttings in powdered or liquid rooting hormone. Although cuttings often root without the assistance of rooting hormone, use of the hormone will increase the chances that the wisteria will root successfully. Plant the wisteria cuttings to about half its length in the moist rooting media, and pat the rooting media gently around the cutting.
  
  

Care for the Cuttings

• Put a clear plastic bag over the container, and secure the container with a rubber band. The plastic functions as a greenhouse as it keeps the rooting media moist and the wisteria cuttings warm. Although the plastic will keep the atmosphere damp for up to several weeks, the rotting media should be watered lightly whenever it becomes dry. Place the container outside in a shady, protected spot. After about a month, check the cuttings for roots by tugging lightly on the cuttings. If the cuttings have rooted, you will feel a slight resistance to your tug.
  
  

Planting the Cuttings

• Transplant each cutting to an individual container measuring at least 6 to 8 inches in diameter so the cuttings have space to develop healthy roots. By spring, the cuttings are ready to plant in the ground. Plant wisteria in full sunlight and moist, well-drained soil.