At this glorious time of the year, blooms to make you purple with envy

IT covers the walls, trickles over the doors and peeps in through the windows – this is wisteria at its glorious best.

Nature has worked its magic this year, providing the perfect conditions for the fragrant flower clusters to bloom around the Queen Anne property.

The climbing plant was already mature when the owners moved into the house near Wells, Somerset, 35 years ago – and is thought to be at least 100 years old.

But now the entire property is drenched in purple splendour, with this year’s display even more stunning than usual. This is all thanks to the recent sunshine and lack of showers. Rain can play havoc with the blossoms, knocking them off the vines.

The wisteria is heavily perfumed and fills the house with its grapelike scent, say the owners, who asked not to be named.

Family friend Charlotte Benfield is pictured leaning out of a window at the property, which dates back to 1700, admiring the flowers. She is far from alone in her appreciation for such beauty, as it is being repeated all around the country thanks to the kind weather.

Wisteria has already been in bloom for a week or more in many places and its spectacular displays are expected to continue for another fortnight – barring storms, of course.

A spokesman for the Royal Horticultural Society said: ‘Because of the poorer weather earlier in the year, we are having a shorter, condensed spring that is creating magnificent displays as everything flowers at once.’

Trained up walls and along pergolas, wisteria takes time to reach its full magnificence. Gardeners must be patient because it takes three to four years until a new vine truly blossoms. But once established, wisteria is hardy and capable of climbing to 30ft in trees or spreading for 60ft on a wall.