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How to deal with my woody clematis montana?
Hi!
I have this Clematis outside my front door.
It looks fine from the outside, but this is the view from my inside window:
I have read various things online, but can anyone advice me (with very specific pointers!) how I deal with this?
I recently trimmed it a bit from the outside as the flowers were long dead, but didn't know what else I could touch? I don't want to damage it, and there were one or two shoots from what looked like dead wood, so again, I dont want to clip an area which may damage it.
Even from the outside, you can see a lot of the dried woody bits. But it is a healthy plant as most of the green mass is above, but you can see a lot of the 'trunk' like stem as it goes into the ground.
I am terrified of doing anything wrong, but any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
I have this Clematis outside my front door.
It looks fine from the outside, but this is the view from my inside window:
I have read various things online, but can anyone advice me (with very specific pointers!) how I deal with this?
I recently trimmed it a bit from the outside as the flowers were long dead, but didn't know what else I could touch? I don't want to damage it, and there were one or two shoots from what looked like dead wood, so again, I dont want to clip an area which may damage it.
Even from the outside, you can see a lot of the dried woody bits. But it is a healthy plant as most of the green mass is above, but you can see a lot of the 'trunk' like stem as it goes into the ground.
I am terrified of doing anything wrong, but any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
0
Posts
You could try a 2 pronged pruning approach to enhance the chance of flowers next spring. Cut through half of those woody stems right at the base then leave them be to wilt for a week or two. This will make it easier to pull and cut out those stems without damaging what's left. Make sure the plant has a good drink, at least 10 litres a week until autumn.
The remaining stems should carry on and thrive and produce flowers next spring. As soon as the flowers go over, cut out all those stems and remove them. Give the whole thing a good drink and a generous feed of slow release clematis food and keep it watered in dry spells. It should produce a whole new set of stems you can train as you like and which will flower the following year.
Thereafter, it just needs training to its supports and an annual trim immediately after flowering to keep it in bounds and you should have a better view and more light at your window.
It can actually rejuvenate them a bit anyway. They get quite unruly once they get established.
A good tidy up of the bed where it's planted is often a good idea too. You can then add a mulch after watering well, and it will give it all a new lease of life. If there's room, and your soil and general weather conditions allow, a few early spring bulbs can add a bit of extra value. I used to have some at the base of mine in a different garden. Nice welcome for you at the front door
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Guernsey Donkey2 Yes, woody as it is, I still feels it looks beautiful when it flowers - but I don't think its healthy to let it be like that - It was there when I moved in, so I'm having to tackle it now before it gets worse!
Lyn thank you, yes, sad as it is, I think i'm prepared to lose a few flowers - it will still look green though
a1154 I think I would be terrified to remove the whole thing, as it is over my front door, and very prominent!
Obelixx Thank you! Your advice sounds perfect, and will give it a go! As a beginner gardener, that is something I can definitely try. I did worry how much impact cutting the lower ones would have on the upper stems (as maybe some go up?) but hopefully minimal...yes, cutting and waiting for it to wilt sounds sensible, I did tug on a few and they were very stiff, and I was worried about damaging the plant.
Richard Ah I see, thank you for that information! I am new to gardening, but have thought about planting some climbers in my back garden - will definitely ask for more suggestions when I get round to doing so.
Thank you all again.
As Richard says - they get huge once established and go for miles if allowed. That's why they're good for covering anything ugly - garages, boring walls, old sheds and outbuildings etc. They aren't the best thing for a front door, but if you give it a good chop, you can then manage it a bit better. If you feel [after living with it for a while] it's the wrong climber for the room you have there, take it out and find something else. Lots of lovely clematis to choose from.
I had one over my back door in another garden, but I trained some of it along the adjacent fence. There was plenty of room for it on the other side too, and I made sure I pruned it each year to keep it in check.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...