Showing off...

more...

Oh Momo How very lovely ...I am green with envy ...we can't grow them it is too hot...but you have inspired me to have another go!
now let me see ....you need a cool root run and what amount of sun ?.....our sun is harsh- so I guess dappled shade ....will it flower with say just early morning sun?.....thankyou

Momo, what a spectaculer show, no wonder you want to show it off, I have one very like this Cemetis, called Multi Blue but as yet, I dont have the show that you have, good for you, you should take cuttings and plant it around.

Chrissey, if you can find a spot in your place, they do like a bit sun on the stems, but your right, the cool root run is the most important, could you plant it so that it would grow through another shrub as a suport for it to ramble over and onto it, that way, maybe you could plant the clemetis rootball on the shade side of the shrub and place a largeish stone over the planting hole to keep the heat out a bit, if you do plant one, sink it about 3/4 inches deeper than it was while in it's pot as they can suffer from stem rot for no reason, that way, if it does get an attack of this, it will throw up new shoots the next season, good luck, hope you too can enjoy this plant. WeeNel UK.

The easiest way I find to keep the roots cool is to use mulch of some sort or as Weenel said, plant some flowers around the base.

Thanks everyone one...we gardeners are a mad lot always pushing the envelope but when we manage to grow something that we should not...Wow!....I am going to try it!:-)

WOW...green with envy....i've tried for 7-8 years to grow clematis, no such luck..finally moved down the shore and i've gotten lucky with just one....jackmannia, i think, but no such luck with the others....so this is what i'm aspiring too..thanks for the inspiration...m

I tried clematis here too. They are a summer annual for us. They come back for a couple years, but, they just get smaller and smaller. I am sticking with annuals for the most part. What few perennials we can grow here don't live more than 2-3 years. Annuals are easy, this is Phlox drummondii>

mwood, I am also near Barnegat! A bit North in Lacey. I see Clematis all over when I drive around but haven't had luck myself! They are a favorite of mine, but, they dwindle out and try to come back but never strong. We have terrible soil naturally here, I was thinking of planting it in a pot then sinking the pot into the ground and hiding it with other plants to keep the feet "cool" Anyone know if that will work or will it hinder it's growth being in a pot??? I can use a big one! I just figured that would keep the good soil for the plant! Somebody mentioned taking cuttings of this plant, does it root easily?? How does one propogate clematis? Does it make seeds to collect or can I just root a cutting in water???

If you plant it in a pot, one thing to remember, It hates acidic soil. I would add a small amount of dolometic lime to the soil mixture that you use. keep it moist but well drained and plant flowers around the base. That amazes me that things we take for granted in the colder climes, such as perennials won't grow down there. I guess its true that they need that cold dormant time. Mother Nature is one fickle woman!!

It's amazing!!

I just purchased a little climates as a garden center is closing and had 60% off. It looks good and sturdy. So I plant this in a full sun spot, and shade the feet w/ other flowers, right? I'm ready to give it a go, and am praying that she'll make it for me!

Any other advice for a clematis newbie??

Make sure you have something for it to grow on. A trellis or an obilisk.
Then just stand back!!! Just kidding.
You probably won't see much happen to it this year, but next year ou should see something. Last year I planted a second one and I had only one flower on it this year. Here's a pic. It is an 'Ernest Markham'.

This message was edited Jul 1, 2007 3:09 PM

Side note: What's the sign on your clematis say, momo? "Gardener's know the best..."

Kristie

Kristie,

it looks like "... best dirt"

Momo,
pics like this almost make me want to give up the tropics

Yes that's it, "Gardeners know the best dirt."
I have another plaque that says "Life began in a garden"

Crissy,
I have one of my clematis growing on the east side of my house so it gets only morning sun. It's been there for 3 years now and is beautiful--puts on quite a show with very large flowers. Like momo said, I use lots of mulch around the roots. Also, plant the roots a little deeper than they are in the pot it comes in. Good luck.

Yes, thats another thing I forgot to mention. D'OH! The Clematises (Clemati??plural?) at my house are on the east side. Morning sun as well. Maybe that helps as the roots aren't being beaten on all day by the sun.

To take cuttings from clemetis, you need to cut off a non flowering shoot, then cut the stem halfway between the two sets of leaves, so you have a leaf joint AND a long bit of stem, insert this into compost/sand mix till it roots, it will take about 2 months to root, but the easiest way for beginners is to lay a nice non flowering shoot onto the earth beside the parent plant, (still attatched to the parent plant) and scrape away some soil, peg (gently) the stem into the soil making sure that a leaf joint is touching the soil, cover the pegged part of the stem and water it, it will root faster than a cutting, you can leave this in the soil till next year to allow good roots to form, be gentle and scrape the earth to see if you have good roots growing on your layered shoot, if yes, nip out the growing tip to get new branches to form, cut it from the parent plant and place it in the new site or into a pot for growing on, clemetis like a rich composted/manure soil with the rootball in shade/cool and the top of the plant in some sun, but not blazeing hot sun, you can do lots of layered cuttings at the one time and as you have not cut them away from the parent plant, this will not harm the parent plant in any way, you get lots of new plants and while the cuttings are rooting, the parent plant continues to grow also, after removing the rooted cutting, give the parent plant a feed as it has worked hard for you. Good luck. hope ye all have new babies soon. Weenel.

Wow, this is an awesome and inspiring clematis! I have a white one like it, and it's only 1/4 the size of yours and i thought mine was soooo pretty this year! Sorry, no pic - the late snow got it before I got a pic!

Thanks for sharing this beauty!

Thank you. I planted it about 2003 or 04, I can't remember. We moved into the house in April 02.