Clematis

Queen of the Vines

Clematis are dazzling!  The blossoms are like jewels in a crown, with extraordinary diversity of colour, petals, sizes, and bloom times.  Everything about the clematis is simply breathtaking.

The clematis is a perennial flowering vine. Once established, it will return year after year. Blooming starts for us on June 1st.

Ease of Plant

Beauty of Bloom

Sunshine Requirements

Tops

All clematis love sunshine!  I planted my clematis against the northern fence in order for the plant itself to face south.  With its back against north and its buds fronting south, the plant gets a maximum amount of sunshine with blossoms mostly staying within my garden for great viewing.

“Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy”

John Denver…I’m humming along!

Base

After pointing out the importance of sunshine, of course there’s a slight spin on things.  The base of the clematis loves shade. 

So how to easily fulfill both of these opposing sunshine requirements? My easy solution, is by planting the clematis behind leafy plants.  The leaves of the plants in the foreground will shade the base of the clematis while allowing the tops of the clematis to be in full sun.

The Clematis needs Something to Climb

The clematis is a vine, and needs a support system to help it climb. Once a trellis has been placed, it should suffice for years to come. Often trellis or twine supports against fences or walls will do wonders. The tiny petioles (leaf stems) wrap around anything miniature.

When planting a new clematis plant, the first foot of growth might need a bit more coaxing. Maybe a little piece of chicken wire will help the plant get started in the right direction.

Three Types

A more complex aspect of clematis is that there are three types:

A) Clematis which blooms on old-wood (on previous year’s growth)

B) Clematis which blooms on old & new wood (on this year’s & previous year’s growth)

C) Clematis which blooms on new wood (only grows on this year’s new growth)

The category of clematis will dictate the style of pruning. 

The first two types of clematis (A) and (B) should be pruned delicately and sparingly in order to keep old wood in place for next year’s sprouting growth. 

Type (C) clematis should be the only type to be pruned aggressively.

Tips

Don’t shy away from owning a clematis. However, I do suggest to do something I neglected to do.

• Upon purchase, simply write down which type of clematis you got. This information is indicated on the plant’s tag.
• If the tag doesn’t have these details, write down the specific name of the clematis and do the research online.

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Oops!

There was a time when I remembered the categories of my clematis, but by now I’ve forgotten everything.  Thankfully, the clematis somehow manages to survive! With gardening, things really are as simple as we choose to make it 🙂

Yikes!

I found out the hard way, that clematis are not fond of being transplanted to a new location. 

I had no choice.  It was to either attempt a relocation or let it die due to additional stone work. 

I untangled my beautiful clematis and dug out what roots I could save.  What was once a thriving clematis turned into a stringy, unhappy plant. It’s been two years since my desperate maneuver, and I’m happy to report the clematis is showing life again. It’s in a terrific sunny location now, so I don’t feel too bad about it all. In hindsight, I should have left the plant where it was and adjusted the placement of the stones around it. I learnt my lesson.

Love Backyard Nature

During the winter months, some little critter nibble on the thin, fragile stems of my clematis.  Nibbling horizontally through every single clematis stem was too destructive even for nature loving me!

I desperately slit pool noodles lengthwise and wrapped whatever stems were left into them. Some use chicken wire to protect the fragile stems. Whatever method you use, it should be starting at ground level, and up to 12+ inches off the ground (those rabbits can stretch pretty high for their supper).  

No worries, the cute rabbits (hares?) have plenty of other, less precious, items they can munch in my garden.