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| Clematis Vines - Monday, April 10, 2006 at 16:54 |
| If you are planting new Clematis vines, loosen the soil to a depth of 2 feet (ya, right, but at least 2' across) and add some peat moss and a bit of sand too -- in a location that will get at least 5-6 hours of sunlight per day. Clematis love to be planted where the tops will get sun, but the soil is shaded by other plants or ground covers. Be sure and put a nice layer of a good organic mulch around the the base of this plant. It is a great idea to apply a fresh layer of mulch each fall. Some other uses of Clematis include training on fences, tree trunks, stumps, rock piles, porches, pergolas, light poles and utility poles. How about planting one with a climbing rose bush? My favorite use it to plant them growing up through junipers or all kinds of other shrubs. Get creative! Pruning clematis vines should be done now, just before they start to grow. For the varieties that we grow, they should be cut down to about 18" tall now. The Paniculata and Tangutica may die back a little more than that, but the other larger flowered varieties will send up the best flowering stems from last seasons ripened stems. Patience is the key for establishing a new clematis vine. The first year, you will do well if you get it to 4-5' tall. The beginning of the second year, you should trim back to about 18" or so and you should get several stems to be 6' or so, and the third year they will be very showy and substantial in the landscape. |