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Pruning beautiful clematis

contactcathcontactcath Posts: 2
in Problem solving
Hi- We have inherited a beautiful clematis at the front of our house currently in full bloom (I think it’s a Montana- see attached pic). It’s very woody underneath the new growth and I’m wondering if should cut back hard and if so when? (See pic below for size of whole plant and sense of under-growth). I’m really concerned about doing any lasting damage but the new growth is so far out from the walls it’s putting lots of strain on the trellis. Really grateful for any help! 

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  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    It does indeed look like a montana and that makes it a group 1 clematis which simply means any pruning is done as soon as flowering finishes in late spring.   Normally you would just prune it to keep it in bounds such as, for instance, keeping it from covering windows, twining round guttering, diving under roof tiles, exceeding its allotted space.

    You can also prune it harder to renew vigour and replace old, woody stems.  

    I think your trellis is woefully inadequate for a montana and has, in any case, been badly attached.   It needs to be fixed to battens on the walls which allow some air movement (prevents problems like downy mildew) and also allows the tendrils to twine around and fix themselves more easily.  I'd be inclined to replace it with a stronger, wider panel between the windows and above them too but, better still, would be a series of unobtrusive wires tensioned between vine eyes - cheap, strong and easy.

    To replace the trellis, I would wait till flowering finishes then cut off everything above the upper level of those windows then carefully remove the old trellis form the wall and lay it down while you attach battens for better trellis or else the vine eyes and wires.  Then cut out the old bits of wood and tie your clematis back up. 

    Give it a very big drink - 15L minimum once or twice a week thru summer, a generous handful of slow release clematis, rose or tomato feed and a mulch of well-rotted manure and/or garden compost.   That should make it a happy clematis that sends out lots of new shoots but you'll need to tie or twine them in regularly so they don't become a huge vertical tangle.

    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
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  • K67K67 Posts: 2,506
    After flowering is best time
    Cut it back as far as you want, remove the trellis and use vine eyes and wire or the plastic gripple system.
    Montana and trellis aren't the ideal match as you have discovered!
  • contactcathcontactcath Posts: 2
    Thank you both for your replies. Sounds like we definitely need to sort the trellis out! I feel more confident about cutting back after flowering now so will definitely have a go at what you suggest.

    Many thanks 😊 
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