Re: Burgandy Clematis -Reply -Reply

At 11:48 AM -0600 6/12/98, SUSAN SAXTON wrote:


> Hi Peggy:
>
> You wrote:
>
> All four sound beautiful and promising. I'll
> probably try them all
> if I can find them.
>
> There are also several mail order sources.
> Wayside is one, but they can take awhile to get
> established.  Let me know if you want catalogue
> names (usually no pictures, however).

I would very much appreciate it. If you don't think others on the list
would be interested please email me privately. Have you had good luck
with Wayside? Tom Clothier was kind enough to send me the URL for a
picture of his 'Red Cardinal' which is a perfect match for my Japanese
maple--now I have to find one.

> I have homes for the ones that don't work
> where the
> color is less critical.
>
> One of the things I've been known to do is
> snap off a flower of the climatis and walk
> around the yard until I find a pleasing color
> combination.  This means moving the climatis
> sometimes, but I really have not found that to
> be a problem.  Obviously you have to consider
> location (if the climatis will like it there) and
> space (how big it gets).

The most terrifying words in the English language to me are, "resents
transplanting." :)

> Ooh.  I just thought of another burgandy-ish
> one.  It is climatis viticelli 'Purpurea Plena' and
> it is a double!  A little large at 10 feet, but it
> does bloom MID-summer versus the others
> that mostly bloom early summer (that can
> make a difference when trying to combine
> them).  If you are going with New Dawn as the
> host plant, I'd go with an early summer one.
> My Purpurea Plena is growing in the middle of
> a large perennial bed, up a large tomato cage
> and cascading over into a 'Silver King'
> artemesia.  Silver King doesn't mature 'till
> mid-summer, so a mid-summer bloomer was in
> order.  You can see the possibilities are endless,
> even though our budgets are not!!!!

I have a 'Will Goodwin' (mine is definitely purple--not blue like the
picture on the tag) scrambling through some cerastium. I think silver
foliage and any of the darker clematis would be pretty stunning. On the
other hand, there is some Perle d'Azur??? (cerastium ate both
tags--silvery, pale lavender with pale pink) in the same bed that has
an almost ethereal quality as a combo but if the cerastium is blooming
the lighter color just blends in. It might be fun to trail that one
through a bed of stachys.

> finding a clematis in bloom at a nursery where I
> live
> doesn't seem to be in the cards.
>
> Get a good climatis book, it is worth its weight
> in gold.  For pictures, descriptions (they really
> are pretty consistent and detailed), color and
> pruning advice.  The one in Wayside's
> catalogue by Evison (?) is very good and about
> $18-20, well worth it and a perfect beginning.
> If you are into roses and climatis, there is a
> book out last year, something like "Roses and
> Climatis as Companions" written by a primo
> climatarian in Britain which is EXCELLENT
> (but $40).  Well worth it though, and extremely
> enjoyable winter reading!  LOTS of pictures.

That sounds like a good candidate for a Xmas list item. Is the
companion book generally available in the US?

> really had my heart set on the New
> Dawn/clematis/maple combo and the
> people at our local nurseries reacted like I was
> asking for the moon.
>
> If they aren't into what you're into, they're
> often no help.
>
> Where do you live?  That can be essential to
> know.

I'm in a tiny zone 6 pocket SW of Kansas City. The main problems in our
area seem to be compacted, farmed-out clay soil and winds. I can fix
the soil problem, trellisis and annual vines help with the wind until I
can figure out where to best put trees and shrubs for more permanent
protection, and I have everything mulched and on drip irrigation to
avoid watering headaches. Also, everything is in raised beds or planted
above grade so none of the plants have to live in a clay pond during
our cold, wet early springs.

> How you plant your climatis can be important.
> I have about 30 now, and have followed this
> advice which I read somewhere:
>
> Be sure to dig a big hole, as your plant will be
> there for a long time (usually).  In my PNW
> garden (acidic) I add mushroom compost and a
> handful of lime (climatis like lime -- hence their
> beauty in England) and bone meal to promote
> root growth.  The main secret that has really
> worked for me is planting the crown or root ball
> about 6 inches BELOW the soil.  Then if your
> plant gets the dreaded climatis wilt (a disease
> that will kill them back to the ground) or
> simply gets snapped off by the dog (or cats, in
> my case) it will almost always come back up.
> Just keep watering it even when nothing shows.
>  It eventually will.

I've been planting only 2" below the soil line. If 6" won't kill them
it sounds like a good idea in my temperamental climate.

> I'll offer further personal experience:
>
>  Everything I'd read said they like cool feet and
> hot heads.  The English say they can take heat,
> they just need lots of water.  When I have
> planted them in too shady of an area, assuming
> they'll grow up through the host into the
> sunshine, it has often slowed their growth
> considerably.  A good book will explain which
> ones like sun/tolerate some shade, etc.

I think most everything grows faster in the maximum amount of sun it
can tolerate without stress. It seems most of my plants appreciate the
mulch and drip irrigation.

> You'll love whatever you decide on, I'm sure.

I'm going to try to find the 'Red Cardinal that Tom has but I'd really
also like to try a couple of the others you mentioned. Have you tried
growing clematis in 5 gallon containers until you get a peek at the
bloom? I thought that might be a better strategy than digging the poor
things out of the ground if the color doesn't work.

Thanks again for all the information and tips.

---
Peggy Enes (peggy@unicom.net)   Zone 5/6


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