Caring for Clematis
Take your garden to new heights with
America's favorite flowering vine

     The clematis is Americas most popular vine - and for good reason. It has few diseases, is largely pest-free and with a little “inside tip” or two, is easy to grow. Once it gets used to its new home in your garden, it should thrive for many years.

     You’ve got lots of choices in co with this plant. Clematis comes In white, pink, blue, purple, red, mauve, lavender and in some cases, blends of more than one color. There are more than 200 varieties in all.

     Most clematis bloom for several weeks In May and June with some sporadic follow-up blooming into fall. Others bloom in summer, and a few bloom in late summer to tall. Remove those spent blooms, and you might be able to coax a month or more of color out of your clematis.

     Most clematis have wide, flat blossoms with four or more sepals. (The sepals are what appear to be flower petals. but they technically not petals.) Most also drop their leaves in winter, except for the evergreen clematis (Clematis armandii.)

Support your local clematis

     Some clematis climb only a few feet, but some of the more vigorous ones can stretch out §0 feet. That’s why you’ll want to plant all but the shrubbiest varieties next to a trellis, arbor or other support. The twining tips will wind their own way up strings and fencing, but you’ll have to train them or tie them up poles and other large or smooth surfaces, as they are not clinging vines.

     Clematis flowers are most often flat, but some varieties have urn-shaped flowers while a few are trumpet-shaped. Get some extra ornamental mileage out of your plants by cutting a few clematis blooms for indoor flower arrangements. Or float cut clematis flowers in a bowl of water after burning the ends with a match to lengthen their life.

     Moving back outside. clematis are at their best when used as a light, airy, colorful screen planting, such as on a deck side trellis, on a porch railing or growing up and over a pergola or archway. They’re also great for growing on fences or up light poles to add vertical color to the front yard. (They also hide that rusty light pole of yours so long as you give them something to climb on, such as string or netting.) Clematis can even be grown as a trailing plant In hanging baskets.

Planting

     The ideal spot for a clematis is in moist, well drained soil that gets sun for at least half the day.
     You’ll find some differing opinions on exactly how to plant them, but in our clayey soil, we recommend digging a hole slightly deeper than the root ball and two to three times as wide. Improve the soil with about one-third organic matter and one tablespoon of lime to two-thirds of your soil. Plant the clematis with the root ball slightly above ground (less than an inch up) and water well with the fertilizer high in phosphorus (the middle number on the label). Then add about two inches of mulch, being careful to keep the mulch a couple inches back away from the trunk so as not to encourage bark rot.
     In really poorly drained soil, dig a foot deeper than the root ball and put down a layer of coarse stone or sand mixed with peat moss.

After-planting Care

     Clematis takes a Mule to get settled, so don’t be a if the growth isn’t tremendous that first year. Just make sure you keep the plant well watered - at least one deep soaking per week to the bottom of the root hall.
     Clematis are fairly heavy feeders, so it’s a good idea to feed them monthly during the growing season. Or feed once in the spring with an organic or slow-release fertilizer. They like near neutral soil so add lime if your soil is on the acidy side.
     Since clematis roots like to be cool and moist, maintain a two-inch layer of mulch at all times or plant a shallow-rooted groundcover around them. Heading into winter, it helps to add a little extra root protection with a thick layer of straw or shredded leaves,

Pruning

     To encourage fuller plants prune all varieties back to about 12 inches (two to three buds) the first and second spring. After then, pruning varies depend on the variety.
     For spring-blooming varieties that flower on the wood that grew the previous year, prune within a month after the plant is done blooming. Thin out dead or weak branches, lightly prune back side branches and let the main branches alone.
     For summer and fall-blooming varieties that bloom on wood produced in the spring, cut back hard to about two feet in early spring just as the leaves are unfurling.

Watch for Wilt

    
     One of the few threats to clematis in this area is a disease called 'Clematis wilt'. This fungal disease causes vines to turn brown and look as if they are dead. Often the vines will re-sprout, however.
     To encourage new growth, remove all infected plant parts and infected mulch. Drench the soil with a fungicide until new growth starts.
     Replanting the root ball about three inches below the soil surface also can help by encouraging buried leaf buds to sprout.
     Using light, high-organic soil and keeping the Mulch away from the trunk can help prevent wilt.  Kelp meal added to the soil also seems to help prevent it.
     Bugs seldom are a problem for clematis, in fact, its one of the few plants that even Japanese beetles hardly ever touch.

 

Ten Top Clematis Choices

• Ernest Markham - Blooms bright magenta, August to fall. 12 to 16 feet.

• Comtesse de Bouchard - Blooms rosy-lilac, June to September 8 to 12 feet.

• H.F. Young - Beautiful true-blue bloomer in May and June and again in September.  Unusually large 8-
                        inch flowers. Grows 8 to 12 feet.

• Henryi - A pure white bloomer, June to September. 12 to 20 feet.

• Bee’s Jubilee - Bluish-pink bloomer with rose bars in May and June and again in August. Color holds well
                            in sun. 8 to 15 feet.

• Jackmani - Probably the most commonly planted local variety. It blooms a deep purple June to
                      September. Profuse bloomer. 8 to 12 feet.

• Nelly Moser - Bloom mauve with pink bars, June to September. Large flowers. 8 to 12 feet.

• Ramona - Lavender blue blooms, July to September 10 to 16 feet.

• Sweet Autumn (Clematis paniculata) - Late season, dainty, star-shaped white blooms, September to
                                                                 October. Vigorous grower to 20 feet.

• Asao - rose-pink flowers with white centers. Blooms May to June and September 6 to 8 feet.

 

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