Clematis: I need your input, please!, 0 by DreamOfSpring

DreamOfSpring wrote:
That's why I had to respond when I saw your question. It seems we have very similiar climates. As for LA, several times I've seen pics from LA swamps and plantations on the net and swore that was Charleston. Almost everything here is covered in Spanish moss. The pic below is of a crepe myrtle down the street from my house.I even have moss in my shrubs and roses.

I live in the historic garden district. The main road is a 2 lane road (that can not be widened because the trees are protected by law). It is lined with those old, old oaks interspersed with magnolias all of which form a low, dense canopy overhead and drip Spanish moss down toward the cars below. It makes for a wonderfully stress reducing ride home from work. I do so want to get a photo but the road is so narrow and so heavily traveled and the trees are too close to permit a "shoulder" so there is just no way to stop or pull over. Portions of this road and the nearby section of Interstate are positively "lavendar" with wisteria for a few weeks in spring. (That drives me crazy, too, because I LOVE the look but can't figure out how to get a photo of either this road or the interstate!)

Yes, we have that white rose along the roads, too. I didn't know it's name. We also have magnolias every few feet in the forest, esp the the Southern Magnolia with the big white flower (your state flower, i believe) and sweet bay magnolia.

As for the clematis, I think you can get away with it. My yard is almost 100% full sun and is great for growing flowers...but rough on the gardener. Actually, the 4 clematis I mentioned have grown bigger and faster and boast many times more flowers than the ones that were planted at the same time but in partial shade. Here is a link to the sweet autumn clematis that was growing on the same SSW fence before I was forced to remove it before it covered the entire yard (http://www.davesgarden.com/pf/showimage/59127/).

Good luck, looking forward to seeing pics of the fence with flowers.