Experience 1.5 Million Blossoms at Sierra Madre’s Wistaria Festival

The Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Wistaria Festival Sunday, March 13, from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., featuring the world’s largest blossoming plant.

The 120-year-old Wistaria vine, located on private property and only available for public viewing at the annual festival, explodes each spring with as many as 1.5 million blossoms and weighs 250 tons, according to the Guiness Book of World Records. The plant is said to have once crushed a structure under its weight.

The wistaria vine, which is known by multiple spellings such as wisteria and wysteria, was named by the British botanist Thomas Nuttall in the early 1800s. The vines climb by twining their stems around any available support, then spreading out laterally. The Sierra Madre vine is of the Chinese lavender variety. The vines are native to China, Korea and Japan, and are also found in the eastern U.S.

Downtown Sierra Madre will be transformed for the festival into an arts and craft fair, with more than 200 artisans and crafters displaying their work and music being performed at multiple venues throughout the day, according to event organizers.

The festival, which began nearly 100 years ago, is expected to draw up to 10,000 visitors. Visitors will need to park outside the festival area, as the city’s two main streets are closed for the event.

In addition to the shops, event organizers encourage visitors to sample the town’s delightful cuisine. Since the surge in popularity of outdoor dining in the 1990s, Sierra Madre has been known throughout the valley as a great place to dine al fresco with a spectacular view of the mountains just to the north. There’s something for every taste, with a variety of international flavors at the local eateries, Mexican, Italian, Thai, and California Continental cuisines, several types of American cuisine and even a Sushi spot.

The festival and viewing of the vine are free of charge, however, due to the steep climb from the festival to the vine and limited parking, shuttles are available and they do cost.

Event organizers warn that terrain around the vine is hilly and will not accommodate wheelchairs, strollers or people with limited mobility. Because the vine is located on private property, it is not ADA compliant.

Call the Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce at (626) 355-5111 for more information.