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re: Clemantis from seed/cuttings


On Tue, 6 May 1997, judy fisher wrote:

> I am glad someone else finally asked a question about Clematis.  I don't 
> know the answer to your question about variations but I would like to know 
> more about starting them from seed.  I gathered many seeds (at least I 
> thought they were seeds) from my existing plants last year and tried to get 
> them to grow, with absolutely no success!  I don't know, maybe I have 
> hybrids. Does anyone know any secrets about Clemantis?  I can't even tell 
> I've planted both and, NOTHING!  

The best advice is to take the seeds with the fattest "heads" just before 
they detach on their own.  I'd store them in vermiculite or peat in a 
baggie at refrigerator temperatures, and sow in late fall.  But my 
success is pretty spotty.  According to the book by Norm Deno, 
germination behavior vaires quite widely within the genus.

I am now trying it 
from cuttings but that 
> has a low success rate.  I know sometimes it works because last year one of 
> the dogs caught his leash on the base of the plant and snapped it right 
> off.  I cut it into foot long pieces and stuck them in soil.  ONE rooted.
> I really want to grow them from seed though, just because it is more fun. 
> 

There's a special technique for propagating Clematis from cuttings, and 
this is the normal procedure that nurseries use.  They are propagated 
from INTERNODAL CUTTINGS [as opposed to NODAL cuttings, which are the way 
you usually prepare stem cuttings].  Cuttings are taken from a stem in 
growth [you can let your dog harvest the vine if you like!].  The stem is 
cut half-way between each pair of leaves.  You can cut off the stem above 
the leaves, with a T-shaped piece remaining.  You then push the stem into 
the rooting medium to the level of the leaf-bases, water in, and cover 
the cutting box with plastic.  Root hormone may be used if you have it.  
Rooting will take some weeks.... you look for new growth from the leaf axils.

This will give a plant true to the parent, faster than seed, and it 
really is as much fun as planting seed.

Loren Russell, Corvallis, Oregon
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