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Clematis Arch

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  • KarinlpriceKarinlprice Posts: 4
    Hello here is the arch I am concerned about as it looks so sparse and as a fairly new gardener I am very worried about as it cost a fortune and I love it so much I don't want to lose it. I am aware it needs repotting and probably needs pruning ant tips please to make it look a bit healthier can any body help please X 
  • JellyfireJellyfire Posts: 1,139
    Hi Karin, just adding your original post to this thread so folk know what it relates to. In future you can just add photos as a new comment below your post so it all stays in one place 
    Karinlprice said:
    hello I am new to the forum and quite new to gardening, so I am hoping that I can get some help, I have a Clematis arch that I bought at the end of last summer at a huge amount of money which I love very much, I was told it nenver flowers but I feel is a bit spared and not as lhealthy as I think it should be and I am also sure it probably needs pruning but I am too scared to do it. Any tips please  to make it look a little healthier. Many thanks Karin 

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Hi Karin- a couple of issues there.  Do you know what variety of clematis they are? I'm not sure why you were told they wouldn't flower, but they certainly aren't terribly happy looking.
    The pots are small - clematis need a lot of room to get a big enough root system to support the top growth they produce, and those pots need to be bigger to make that easier for you to keep them thriving. They look like they could be montanas - I'm finding it hard to tell properly from the  pic though. If they are - they get very big - clothing garages/sheds/ large fences etc, so they need a lot of moisture and room to succeed. 
    Some of the foliage looks newish though - and montanas can have quite bronzey foliage initially, and also new foliage can get a little weather damaged, so it may not be as bad as it seems. If you can find out the variety of clematis, that would help further, or if you could take some close ups of the leaves that will also help. They may well be a different type, and it would be easier to give pruning advice etc if you can determine that.  :)
    Also - what soil medium are you growing them in? Any plant in a pot long term needs more than just compost, so a soil based compost is preferable, to prevent water loss. Wind can also be very drying, not just heat, so it's important to keep up with watering in pots. It's much harder than having plants in the ground. They also need good drainage, so that roots don't get waterlogged and have enough air round them.
    Hopefully, Richard Hodson , who runs a clematis nursery, might pop in here too and he would be able to identify the type of clematis you have. That will make life easier all round! 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    I would put them in the ground if you can.
  • JellyfireJellyfire Posts: 1,139
    Fire said:
    I would put them in the ground if you can.
    It would certainly help the plants massively. Also I’ve never come across a non-flowering clematis, although I’m no expert on them, I can’t see any reason why it wouldn’t flower, unless it’s not a clematis at all
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    They don’t look like Clematis to me! 
    They are not growing like Clematis would at this time of the year, and the leaves are different. 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    edited May 2018
    Is it possibly a clematis arch with something else growing on it? An ill trachelospermum jasminoides?
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    The OP did say it was a Clematis arch and not Clematis planted on it.
    I am amazed how it’s standing there just poked in the pots.  Mine have to have 3’ stakes banged in the ground to keep them standing up!.
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • KarinlpriceKarinlprice Posts: 4
    Thank you all so much for your help I had already planned to repot it next week although we dis buy it from Wyvale in the pots in the picture, but I realise now it probably is suffering from the wind as our very small garden is very open to the elements. I will try to get it in the ground eventually but at this time I cannot do it as my poor husband is incapacitated. However I will be talking on board all of your suggestions and will feed it and water it a lot more.  This is how it looked in the winter  and I think it was a lot happier lol Karin x
  • MarlorenaMarlorena Posts: 8,705
    I don't see a clematis on the arch, I see a Trachelospermum which has suffered some winter damage, probably got frozen at the roots.  It will take some time to recover, although it's not dead - surprisingly...

    It appreciates some feeding, and I would think it's pot bound by now, so you have some work to do in the future, but for now try feeding it and see if it improves..
    East Anglia, England
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