My Clematis
Clematis are Starting...
I bought 2 last year as babies. I planted them last fall. So far I only see 1 trying to poke a stem out of the ground. I wanted them so bad. I should have waited till this spring to order and plant.
I just looked up the order, I did it in July. So you would think that they took ok. I sure hope so, those suckers were not cheap...lol
So sorry, nothing to give you as far as the Advante.
This message was edited Mar 23, 2011 4:27 PM
This message was edited Mar 23, 2011 4:32 PM
Lilylove (Kim) - no experience here with AG either. Drop Jeanne a note.
Gorgeous, drthor!
Marie - which ones? Some are anxious to leap out of the ground (texensis) while others are just taking their sweet time to torment us. Even the montana doesn't have any speck of green yet and that's generally one of the earliest to show itself.
When I spotted this bud breaking last week I got excited. At my age it doesn't take much!
It was the Advant Garde I bought. The rest of my clems are doing great that I planted, but these are not showing much of anything. It looks like it died all the way back to nothing and now just putting up a small shoot. I hope this is normal.
LOL, I can relate with the age thingy. Okay my friend, I'll send Jeanne a dmail.
I understand too. These plants are like my children. Hec I get so excited when I see baby fish in my pond .
I holler to my husband,, we are grandparents again...lol
I hope this helps you Lily-Love
Clematis Avant-Garde™
The 2in flowers of this striking climber consist of a central pompom of rosy pink petals backed by a set in dark velvety red. Bred using disease-resistant species, Clematis Avant-garde™ is a vigorous, free-flowering plant. Prune it to 10-12in tall in early spring and it will shoot up to 9-10 ft, quickly covering a trellis or adding a second season to color to a Rose or small tree. Flowering begins in midsummer and goes on into autumn.
I am know assuming that since it is a later bloomer, it will grow much later then the rest.
This message was edited Mar 23, 2011 6:37 PM
Oh Marie, thanks for researching the info. on Avant-Garde for me. I'm debating where I can place this one. Here; climbing up this arbor perhaps?
Oh My, can I come live with you.. that place is beautiful.
It might do well for a while in a pot but I don't think it will do well long term. You might want to get more info from others on that.
Marie, you're welcome to visit sometime, not sure how it works out in the long term when there are two cooks in the house. lol I may just purchase one more, to plant it permanently in the garden elsewhere. But I can see Avant-Garde all over this spot. Those deep ceremic pots I use, they sure can insulate and withstand the weather. Arlene your thought?
Just my 2 cents on pots and warm weather zones...I saw a link on a garden center in South Africa where the lady grows gorgeous clematis. I think she replaces or adds some of the soil yearly and after some years will trim the roots and ofcourse fertilizes. I will look for the link.
I'd be so entranced by the view that I probably wouldn't grow any plants, Kim!!!!
I know Pirl. I want to move in,,,I will pay rent. Hubby can stay here in NJ...lol
Okay, Marie will start from NJ down onto NY and pick you up on her way to come down and visit. That's final! LOL. Thanks Bananna18. I'll give it a try and will keep all of us posted.
http://clematisbymarie.jimdo.com/clematis-show-2010/
Yes, that is a mystic view! Is there water beyond the deck?
cross post...now I have my answer! Maybe you guys will have to detour out here to Texas and pick me up!
Thanks all, you're welcome too. lol Maybe I can open a bed and breakfast nook heh? bananna18, one draw we've. Just like anything else, there is a flip side of the coin. Every few years, we'll have a flood that exceeds 6 feet high. We just got over one (flood) and clean up was a pain. See the copper post cap on rails? Flood covered those caps, luckily no plants were killed by the flood.
Yes..there is a downside. Water can be so destructive as we all know.
I bought an Avante Guard along with a Crystal Fountain two years ago. They are the only clems I have been unable to grow. I don't know if it was me or the plants but they both died. I since have planted a Princess Diana and Ragoochi in the same spot the and they are doing fine.
I am going to try another Avante Guard this year. They are so pretty.
holy cow ,,,, that was a flood and a whole half of a flood.... lol
mstish, those Avante Garde, the one that I bought from "John Deer" nursery in Birmingham, Al. Their root system is massive! The individual roots are much larger than most clematis' roots that I've seen, they twice as fat. Though the vines themselves are slender and looks fragile. It is product of Novalis TM "Plants that Work". I saw the picture of the blooms on the tag. They indeed very fragile looking vines.
Do they ship?...lol
Hah, I've two websites that you can check out. These are with the tag of the plant. www.novalis.com and www.plantsthatwork.com.
I'll be dreaming of that view tonight, Kim!
Arlene, you're welcome here anyday, maybe we can do a get together with others gardeners sometimes. Have a blessed eve. see you on the net again soon.
Lily_love....Sorry for not responding to your question...Spring has arrived here with an explosion of growth, and I'm trying to do all
the chores I put off until now.....here in northwest Tuscany, we're probably a zone 9A...the Italian climate zone maps are not that detailed...
so we get a frost anytime after Nov. 15, and finish by March 15th...the real problem here is not the cold, although it can get down to
26 a few nights...cold enough to kill back the Phoenix Canariensis palms folks try to grow...but it's the rain. We're pretty soggy most of the winter...if I leave my cannas in the ground, most will re-grow...but the dahlias are another story....some return, many don't.....gladiola
will re-grow...to the point of the little bulblets being pests...but my clematis are very fussy....I've lost several....and am getting discouraged...
it might be the summer heat, which is intense here....I mulch, pamper, feed, water,prune...and they just dry up. It's a trial and error kind of
gardening....hemerocallis and iris do far too well...we're cold enough for daffs and tulips...but not for lilac or most cherries....I did find a few
creatures enjoying the "fruits" of my labors....several tiny mice (the local fox got them)...lots of slugs and snails (had to buy pellets for them..
I hate to murder anything, but it got to the point my pansies were reduced to stubs) and assorted hopping things (dispatched by hand)....it may be that the clematis are being chewed by an unknown, darkness-loving beast...or they just don't like it here in Pastaland.....shame, because I love them......any suggestions? Honi
I have had the same problem with avante guard, have not seen much growth, very little flower production, planted next to Zouphrine rose, was hoping for a nice match. So far a dud.
How long have you had yours Demr2?
I was wondering about this plant. When you read the reviews, some say hey Great plant grew 6 ft the first year, then others say, not good, no real growth.
Interesting reading. I put in AG about 3-4 years ago. So far I have yet to see a bloom and the foliage seems to be fragile and spindly as mentioned above.
Last year, we were so dry, it was all I could do to keep my plants alive. AG withered and turned brown, so I don't know if I will see her this year. I am beginning to think that I will not replace her either. She is growing with Alba Luxurians and that one is doing well.....
Honi, thank you for your reply. What a coincident that you've described my climate here in central Alabama USA! I can relate to all the gardening experience that you've shared in a nutshell. Well summarized. I do not have many practical advice on how to control certain garden's pests. Such as moles and voles, we do have them here. I saw an occassional tiny rodent zipping through the paved walkway. Luckily, there are nocturnal domesticated pets that deter these pests. I think neighbors' cats that patrol the area at night helped out. lol
As far as snails and slugs control in humid, warm climate is a real challenge. I read that if we set traps out such as folded papers on the ground at night and manually collect them in early morning and dispose of them. And/or using beer traps that would work. With all that said, I'd like to apologize to Cattjovi for the OT on his/her thread.
dem2rd, I'll open a new thread on Clematis Festoon Avant-Garde on our forum so everyone can feel free to share their own experience there with others.
Honi - would you consider potting up a clematis or two so you could insure good drainage over the wet winter and with a few inches of compost/mulch on top the roots should stay cool in summer if the pot is protected by closely surrounding plants?
As Kim said, a cat would be a huge help with the voles and moles but no help with the slugs. We also have the slug problem and Ortho Bug Geta works best here but it's not to be used where pets could get it.
Marie, Carolyn, Kim: a thread for AG would be most welcome. We can all learn from it.
bananna18, thank you so much for sharing the link above on container grown clems. by marie.jimdo.com those are fabs.! I personally over the years have found even in the hot humid Southern regions, clems can be grown successfully in containers, provided that they're large enough to withstand freezing and thawing in the mild winters. As well as it can hold moisture, but have good drainage (sound like a contradictory in terms-- just avoid letting them baked in the sun for an extended period).
There's a halfe whiskey barrel outside that currently I've Niobe and Belle ofWoking sharing the pot. I'll share pics. as they're about to burst in blooms in matters of weeks, if not days.
pirl....Yes, that's an idea....we have a plant show this week-end called "Verde Mura" in Lucca....it's put on every year, and it usually
features spring-blooming plants and flowers....we saw some really lovely clems. last year....they represent an investment, at anywhere
from 15€ to 30€ each....times that by $1.40 this morning, and you can see how much they really cost....I'm a little afraid to make the
investment as an novice grower...and have the summer heat do them in....but even in their small plastic pots, they are so beautiful that it's
tempting...we'll see what they have this year....Honi
Cost is always a factor. You might ask if any of the plants you like will be for sale at the end of the show. Sometimes they do sell them because they can't keep everything.
pirl....We went to see the show today...a really big event for Lucca...growers from all over Italy come, with any kind of plant you could want...lots of clematis, exotics of all kinds...we were interested in the hemerocallis, as we collect them (a small collection to be sure)..
there are growers from the island of Sardinia...Rome....the north....but I wasn't that impressed with the clematis, actually.....everybody was selling maybe 5-6 kinds, that's all....and most of them we have tried here...the northern growers didn't have any for sale, of course...the southern growers had lots of them in bloom....but since I've lost a few already, I didn't bite...I'm going to wait until I see what kinds will
last here, then try to collect....even the iris were in short supply...too early, I think......there's another big show at the end of April in the center of Lucca....it's there that the iris and clems will be in full glory...so we'll see...I bought 4 new daylilys, as now is the time to plant them....too late, and they will not have time to adjust before the heat comes...and since there is an admission to the show, I won't go back tomorrow for the end...it's going to rain, anyway........talk soon......Honi
Enjoy the new plants, Honi, and let's hope the next show has some newer varieties for you to try and maybe some of the growers can give you some good ideas on how they grow their plants and you could give it another try.
Can't wait to see the pics Honi!
Pirl, so is my "Ramana" not "Ramona"? I took this photo yesterday.
Betsy
Oh, Betsy! How I wish I could help you. I spent hours on many clematis sites yesterday because my Ramona does not match the dark centered Ramona I see on Plant Files and online photos. Now I have no idea what mine is though the label said 'Ramona'.
Your earlier post of 'Ramona' on this thread does look like the photos on Plant Files.
Is the lighter one, in your post this morning, also 'Ramona'? I'm really confused!
Those are gorgeious Betsy and Arlene! Doesn't matter what the names maybe. I found that there is a trick to taking pics. of flowers that in the shade of blue/purple. Rarely my purple or blue clematis come out true to its color as the eyes see them.