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Overgrown climber

amandataylor6amandataylor6 Posts: 11
in Problem solving
Hi, I have moved into a new place and have a climber that is growing wildly from the wall. There is lots of old growth under the new foliage. It’s growing over a metre from the wall with most of it old growth.  Can anyone tell me what it is and what I should do with it. Thank you.

Posts

  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited October 2022
    It's really quite an novel feature.  Follow it for 12m and you might grow to love it.

    A quick guess is clematis.  But first find out what is sustaining it, and from where it gets its water.  Or is that a stem rooted in the soi,l which I can vaguely see.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    It's a Clematis  montana  which flower in spring. Most varieties are pink or white.
    You can cut it back hard - usually after flowering is the best time so that you get the flowers, but it's a plant which covers large areas very easy once established, and is extremely useful for many sites, especially to cover ugly outbuildings etc, and birds will often use it for nesting in  :)
    It's obviously been maintained to look like a 'tree' which is a shame really, but it depends on what you like. If you want to keep it for covering the wall, you'll need to put in some supports for it to twine around. Wires and vine eyes would do, and will be mostly hidden as montanas maintain a branching framework once the leaves have dropped   :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    @amandataylor6 After flowering in spring I would cut it back hard. The problem is if they are not tied in properly the whole thing can fall forward if it is windy. I saw one fall in seconds it was fixed to a trellis on a wall, the trellis snapped and fell with it.
    Enjoy the flowers then just go for it!
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • Arthur1Arthur1 Posts: 542
    You can prune hard, preferably early spring. Chances are it will bounce back. There is a chance though, that it won't. Shock can kill even the toughest of plants.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Don't prune C.montanas in early Spring. They flower in Spring, and should be pruned afterwards, if they need pruning at all.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • Songbird-2Songbird-2 Posts: 2,349
    We've just dug ours up today🙁 Weight problems on the archway it was growing up and over. What a beast to dig out.
  • Busy-LizzieBusy-Lizzie Posts: 24,043
    I rather like it growing like that. There is plenty of room on that wall. Only worry is whether it has any support and whether it will fall off the wall one day.

    It is a clematis montana so it will flower in the spring. Do not prune in the spring or you won't have any flowers. It should be smothered in flowers. If you really want to prune it then do it after flowering as punkdoc said. I never prune mine, though they can be pruned quite hard if they get too big but the flowers may be lost for a year.


    Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited November 2022
    My rule for pruning is to do it immediately after flowering.  Or for late flowerers, leave it until the spring. It works for clematis.

    My other rule is to do it when you are in the mood. (Robin Lane Fox)
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    edited November 2022
    @bede, I think you will find he stole that quote  from Christopher Lloyd.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
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