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Clematis: How far down to prune?
theno2soco
Posts: 80
I am a novice and never had a clematis before. I have one which I think flowered early in the year and I do not know its name. I have recently moved into this bungalow and there is a lot I have to sort out for next year.
The clematis had climbed up a steel archway, reaching the top. It has hard brown stems coming out of the ground and I have cut back to a few inches above the brown stems. These stems are some 1/2 metre tall and about 150mm away from the support which is why I felt I should leave some of the 'greenery' above the stems to keep it holding to the support.
The clematis on the other side has died and I was considering moving another one which is growing against a wall to replace it.
My question is, do I prune similar to roses low down, or to some point above the hard brown stems?
The clematis had climbed up a steel archway, reaching the top. It has hard brown stems coming out of the ground and I have cut back to a few inches above the brown stems. These stems are some 1/2 metre tall and about 150mm away from the support which is why I felt I should leave some of the 'greenery' above the stems to keep it holding to the support.
The clematis on the other side has died and I was considering moving another one which is growing against a wall to replace it.
My question is, do I prune similar to roses low down, or to some point above the hard brown stems?
Every contact leaves a trace - LocardMy abode: Essex, soon to be a desert!
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Group 1 includes the armandii, cirrhosa, montana and alpina types which flower thru winter or early in spring and are only pruned once flowering finishes and if they need to be kept in bounds or rejuvenated.
Group 2s are the large flowered hybrids which flower from late April to late June and these are pruned once flowering finishes to tidy them up and encourage new growth and a second bloom in late summer. It's usually enough just to dead head them in early July but you can also remove obviously dead stems in winter. They can also be treated as group 3s and you will then get one long flush from July onwards.
Group 3s are pruned hard in late winter as they flower on new growth.
I would advise your leaving this one alon until it flowers again and you can try and identify it and thus its pruning regime. Give it a good feed of slow release clematis, rose or tomato fertiliser in February/March and keep its base weeded. Make sure it is well watered during any dry spells. Keep an eye it when growth starts again in spring and train in any new stems. Take photos of the flowers and use this website to try and identify by colour/size/flowering time - https://clematisontheweb.org/new-clemlistsearch.cfm
The feeding and watering apply to all clematis, especially those planted too close to walls and fences as these cast a rain shadow and can leave the plants thirsty. Clematis have deep, thick, fleshy roots and don't like to be dry - except for alpinas and koreanas which cope better.
If you do move the other one, water it generously beforehand and leave it to soak for an hour. Yuo'll need to dig deep to get asuch root ball as possible and have its new hole prepared and ready for planting. Don't plant it shallow and do make sure it is well watered after planting and during any dry spells.
Are you suggesting I just leave everything now as it is until they all flower next year?
My abode: Essex, soon to be a desert!
If you have already pruned them, there is nothing you can do, but they will probably be fine.
When you don't even know who's in the team
S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
My abode: Essex, soon to be a desert!
If you don't want it getting any higher or wider, keep it pruned to the bounds you set but I wouldn't do any hard pruning on that one without knowing what it is.
My abode: Essex, soon to be a desert!
I always prune my group 3 (later flowering) clematis about now unless they are still flowering well.
Not for any great clematis-related reason but simply that I'm not a great one for gardening in winter and find a mess of brown stems a bit depressing to look at in the dark months - prefer things a bit neater and tidier. There are so many other jobs to do and lots of small things poking through the soil in early spring (the time usually recommended for pruning them) that it just makes sense to me to do it now. Haven't noticed any real problems.
I do the same with late fruiting raspberries - cut the stems right down as soon as they've finished fruiting in autumn - one less job to do in spring.
My abode: Essex, soon to be a desert!
https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/clematis/pruning-guide
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.