For our Japan Wisteria tours we will be going to places
like the Kawachi Fuji Gardens and Ashikaga Flower
Park. In the Kawachi Fuji Gardens there are two
Wisteria Tunnels that were popularized in 2012 when
someone posted about it on a website. One tunnel is
80 meters long (263 feet) and the other is 220 meters
(722 feet). The tunnels feature different colored
wisteria as you continue down the path and are
separated like a rainbow. At the end of the tunnel are
more wisterias, where some are more than 100 years
old. There are areas where you can relax while being
surrounded by wisteria. You can see many people
having picnic lunch under the trellises of the wisteria.
There is also wisteria domes located in the interior of
the Kawachi Fuji Gardens.
In Ashikaga Flower Park there is a tree called the
“Great Wisteria.” The tree is over 150 years old and its
three large trellises are spread out to cover over 600
tatami mats or more than 1000 square meters. On
the long vines of the tree blooms the rare double petal
wisterias. The branches are supported by multiple
beams, which create this umbrella effect. The Great
Wisteria is in full bloom around late April to early May.
Tochigi Prefecture has designated the wisteria tree as
a Natural Monument. At night you are brought to
another world as the Great Wisteria is illuminated. The
Kibana Wisteria Tunnel spans over 80 meters and
features yellow colored wisteria and can be seen
around early to mid-May. This yellow tunnel of wisteria
is the only one in Japan.
