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Pruning Clematis
Glenys Rumble
Posts: 39
Can anyone tell me the rule of thumb regaarding the pruning of different type of clematis
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Group 1 don't need pruning except to tidy or fit their 'space' better.
Group 2 can be tidied after flowering ( sometimes giving another show of flowers) or not pruned at all, but many people prune the same as for Group 3, which are cut right back to around a foot or eighteen inches in late winter/early spring.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Which group does a Montana Rubens belong to? I have planted a new one this year - no flowers or buds on it this year and it is still growing vigorously up the trellis.
Thanks for that, excuse my ignorance but can you explain the difference in the groups 1,2 3,. I have the small flowered i.e.Arabella prolific flowering Large leaf double flowers in spring single flowers in autumn type. Some of the large flowered ones do not produce many flowers. My soil is moderate to heavy. Another group has medium size flowers and produce a burst of flowers for a spell and thats it no more flowers. I appreciate all your advice
Flowers before June - no need to prune!
Montanas are Group 1 GD
Sounds like a Group 2 Glenys. If you take a look at one of clematis growers' sites online - you can find pruning advice. Taylor's is one that many of us use and recommend. Or the RHS - you'll be able to type in the name of the clematis you have and it will bring up info
I've just looked up Arabella - it's a herbaceous clematis - so slightly different from most as it doesn't 'climb' as such. It seems to be a Group 3 so you can prune it back in early spring.
If your bigger flowered clematis aren't flowering very well, it could be down to not pruning so the flowers will appear at the top of long stems, or they aren't getting enough food or water.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
The sort of clematis which need hard pruning in early spring are the ones which flower after midsummer. (These are group 3.) These produce their flowers on stems less than a year old, usually at the very end of long stems, and just get out of sight unless you prune them (down to strong buds, maybe 6" off the ground).
Large-flowered hybrids flowering before June (that's group 2) just need trimming back a little bit in spring, to cut off old flowers and weak stems. Or you can prune them after flowering if you prefer.
Group 1 clematis are the very early flowering hybrids and species like montana, macropetala, alpina etc, which produce flowers on stems they grew the previous year, and these need no pruning unless they get too big for their space, when you can chop them back after flowering.
GD, I guess your montana Rubens is just settling down...
If you check Taylors Clematis Website they have a good pruning guide and you can check which types you have at the same time.
See https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=109
You can make most clematis flower when you want them to do, within reason. For example, the Large Flowered Hybrids are split into 2 groups, Early and Late, easy to adjust these by altering pruning regimes. Your montanas are Group 1, flowering on old wood in May/ June, then they will put a few flowers on in September, on new wood. The viticellas, viornas and many of the species can be controlled by pruning, some plants respond well to only pruning half of the stems, to give a continuation of bloom.
Thank you all for pruning advice for my plug Montana - it has grown so much since I planted it out in July - I am training it almost vertically along the trellis and it is thickening out very well. So pleased that I don't have to prune out all my training efforts before it flowers next year.