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Clematis Montana issue

joqJXvKZD9joqJXvKZD9 Posts: 2
in Problem solving
Hello! I’m trying to diagnose a problem with a 3 year old clematis Montana. It did really well for 2 years and was looking great this year until I started wondering where the flowers were. There are very few ‘proper’ flowers. Some very very small ones and lots of stems are wilted with loads of tiny dried up buds :( 

After googling the thing that best suits it is clematis wilt, but Montana is supposed to be more resistant to this I thought.

I’d really appreciate any advice if anyone diagnose from the pics I’ve added? Can it be saved from getting worse at least!?

thanks in advance!

Posts

  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    I would say that's either frost damage or the very cold winds we've had. Clematis wilt doesn't normally affect montanas as you said and doesn't look like that either. Next year's blooms hopefully will be better. It's still a young plant after all.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • RuthmshawRuthmshaw Posts: 45
    Where is where is the clematis planted? I ask because mine is even worse, no flowers and buds which don’t look as if they will open (they are sort of shrinking). I am putting it down to the north wind which whistles down an alley and hits the clematis planted against the shed. Mine has been planted 3 years and this is the first year it looked like flowering. I even covered it with fleece when we were forecast a very frosty spell but then the weather improved so I removed the fleece, obviously too early! I thought Montana were tougher than this! Sorry not much help but I do think the position of the plant and the weather are the reason your clematis is not thriving.
  • joqJXvKZD9joqJXvKZD9 Posts: 2
    Thanks so much Lizzie27 and Ruthmshaw. It did well for the last 2 years, so I hope it is frost actually, rather than a bad position or any sort of fungal disease. At least then it will hopefully bounce back next year and not die! I just noticed some other frost damage (I think!) to other plants so fingers crossed thats all it is  :)
  • JohnnypJohnnyp Posts: 71
    Yes definitely frost damage by the looks of it ,got one exactly the same and we had temps down to -4 a few weeks ago and played havoc with the buds on my hydrangea's also . Today has been the warmest day we have had all year .
  • Ryan180680Ryan180680 Posts: 202
    Same happened to ours. But new growth is sprouting through so put it down to frost damage. It did kill one plant though which I had to chop right back but I've now bought a new one to replace it with 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    edited May 2021
    The first pic could also be damage further back down the stem, which is very common in any clematis. A bit of frost damage is nothing to worry about though - they're totally hardy everywhere in the UK. 
    It's a young plant and once established properly, will cope with anything. It's also been very dry in many areas, so check it  has adequate watering, and by that I mean a bucketful at a time every few days, not a dribble every day. That ensures that roots get down properly, and they will then seek moisture lower down in future. They won't do well if they get dehydrated. They become huge plants, with large root systems, once they get going  :)
    Montanas don't get wilt.
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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