Clematis not growing and getting lots of brown leaves

mclarke4_ · May 2023

Hi, I have a clematis in my front garden that seems to have stopped growing over the last couple of months and has an increasing number of dead leaves. Any ideas why this might be?

Unfortunately I am not sure the type of clematis but it gets sun in the morning for a few hours. I have fed it with all purpose fertiliser a few weeks ago

AnniD · May 2023

It looks like a type of clematis Armandii, but l'm not absolutely certain.
It may well be that last year's very hot weather, coupled with a cold spell in December have affected it.
Hopefully someone can confirm that it is Armandii (or not !).
https://www.gardenersworld.com/plants/clematis-armandii/

Fairygirl · May 2023

Looks like armandii. I don't grow it, as I don't have the right site for it, but many people on the forum do.
They do need more of a sunny, sheltered site though, so weather/climate, and the site are always important with them, and colder, windier conditions are often more problematic. It can set back a lot of plants, but it's not necessarily a long term problem, or the end of it's life. It's been a difficult year or two for lots of plants because of those swings from mild to cold, and the droughts in many places too.
Don't keep feeding it though. It should come away when conditions suit it, and you can remove the dead foliage then, or let it drop itself. Some dead foliage is fairly normal after winter anyway. Just keep an eye on it, and hopefully it should produce new growth.
The new foliage is often bronze, so just don't mistake that for dead foliage!

Clematis not growing and getting lots of brown leaves

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