As someone else was told by a member, not me, recently
other people are allowed to make their own choices ... if everyone shared your taste in plants we’d all have gardens just like yours and yours would no longer seem exceptional 😂
I didn't realise you already have the montana so, if there's nowhere else it can go you'd better plant it there but be prepared for wrecked trellis. In the scheme of things, a broken trellis won't be that expensive to repair, just a PITA.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I have a Montana, and to be honest if I could turn back time
I wouldn’t have bought it but I was silly and naïve and didn’t do my research
first! As I didn’t know what I was
doing, I listened to the advice of someone who told me it must be cut down to
the ground before winter every year. So that’s
what I’ve been doing for the last 3 years!!
Until last year when I finally worked out that I shouldn’t really ever cut
it. It never flowered before and I was
on the verge of getting rid completely, so you can imagine my joy now I see all
these flower heads about to come out (yes I am praying frost doesn’t get them!). But suffice to say, yes you can cut it right
down if you like and it shouldn’t mind, mine certainly never has. Yes it is on a trellis in the corner on the
wall, and yes the trellis has snapped, never mind!!
As with other group 1 clematis, the time to cut back montanas, alpinas, macropetalas, cirrhosas is immediately after flowering. If you just cut and then leave it a week to go limp there will be less damage to trellis when pulling it off but if you let the thing montanas get huge their sheer weight and vigour will break or strain the trellis unless it's very sturdy stuff.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I didn't realise you already had the plant! Do you have anywhere else it could go? In for a penny, in for a pound, then. Make your trellis as sturdy as you can.
On a slightly separate note, I understand the point about 'right plant in the right place' and I understand that montanas will get huge, but what is to stop anyone planting one and treating like a group three, cutting it right back after flowering every year. Would there be a downside? I cut my old back hard regularly when I realised it would break the fence, and it grew back happlily. Genuine question...
As long as its well fed and watered so it regrows and makes plenty of new flower buds it should be OK. Just the caution of letting the severed stems wilt before pulling off the trellis to minimise damage.
I have, for years, treated group 2s as group 3s and got away with it but then it was mostly necessary because winters were so cold they froze the old stems to bits and killed all the buds anyway.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Posts
other people are allowed to make their own choices ... if everyone shared your taste in plants we’d all have gardens just like yours and yours would no longer seem exceptional 😂
I will think about my options. Thanks everyone
I have, for years, treated group 2s as group 3s and got away with it but then it was mostly necessary because winters were so cold they froze the old stems to bits and killed all the buds anyway.