31/05/15 In 1972 Noel (76) and Rosemary (73) Cleave planted a single wisteria vine to brighten up the house they were renovating. Forty-three years l
31/05/15 In 1972 Noel (76) and Rosemary (73) Cleave planted a single wisteria vine to brighten up the house they were renovating. Forty-three years later the plant has become so huge, enveloping all four sides of their home with stunning blooms, that the couple now say their home could implode. Noel said: “In 1968, We bought two cottages, which had been derelict for 14 years and began turning them into our family home. They were freezing cold and when we first moved in with our two children. I remember the the water glasses freezing overnight. “I planted the wisteria vine two years later. Since then it’s grown right around the house. “It’s so huge that if it shrank for any reason, the whole house could implode!” he exlaimed. “Each year the new shoots grow about 20 ft. It takes a lot of work and I have to prune it for two days twice a year; in June and again January. “We get passers-by stopping all the time to take photographs – especially Americans. And people are always asking us for cuttings. “I planted another one nine years ago on the patio and that’s doing very well too” he added. The cottages were built on the Roman road known as the Fosse Way next to a small river in Crudwell, near Malmesbury, Wiltshire. They are thought to date back to the 1800s and are believed to have once been farmers cottages. “We bought them at a time when everything was cheap around here - it was a once in a lifetime investment.” said Noel. All Rights Reserved: F Stop Press Ltd. +44(0)1335 418629
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Keywords: cleave, cottage, crudwell, flowers, fsp, garden, malmesbury, noel, press, rosemary, stop, wiltshire, wisteria, wysteria
