CG, this is exactly why I ask questions in here. I know I'll get straight answers from folks that specialize in Clematis. I must have gotten lucky with the ones I pretty much buried, cause they are fine. Those were my first three, planted about 13 or 14 years ago. But, I'm glad to know the correct way to do things now. I must confess, that the last six or seven I planted only went in an inch or two deep. I got lazy and just kinda plopped them in the ground and those are just fine and quite vigorous. :) I'm blessed with good Iowa black dirt to plant in and everything does quite well. Especially the weeds. :) LOL
Regarding the arches, thanks, those are some really great ideas. I have a couple cheaper ones that I may zip tie together to make a very very small tunnel and see how that goes. :) I would make a great entrance into the veggie garden.
Thank you so much for answering my questions, I appreciate it. ;)
Diann
Hardwick Hall More Summer Blooms
thanks ticker. entrance to garden sounds lovely. my hubbie does a lot with those zip tie things and it is amazing how well a 3 ft piece of rebar can stabilize something!
Yeah, rebar.... :) I wish I knew how to weld. :) LOL
Ticker you aren't the only one, as I'm thinking if I could weld, I would go into business making trellises to sell to all the Clematis folks here....LOL No seriously I wish I could as I would do just that.
Janet
ps my SSV order came today. They made the trip across country in good shape. Debbie really has her packing down pat for her Clematis.
Meadowyck, I thought about getting a welder, so I could make clematis supports too. lol
Hmm ...would zip ties and rebar hold an arch?
Julia:
I've looked on the internet a great deal, but to get set up right the cost was more than I could do right now, especially since DH was laid off....
However, I'm looking around for a black smith (and if we move back to KY this will be easy find) to talk with them about doing the work. I would design and let them create them. I would then set up an web page to sell from.
I know I would be my own best customer...LOL
Janet
i think rebar down in the soil maybe 8 inches and zip ties could hold an arch, but depends on wind and other factors i am sure.....hubbies do not like jury rigged set ups, but make mountain out of mole hills from time to time. big pots on sides of arches help too.....
would love to make garden structures in the off season, but somehow guess it is not happening here. ......
buggie, but great weather here. 50's at night 70's daytime for days now. clems like it, and the bugs do too.
here is rubro marginata in full glory taken this morning.
jackmanii and etoile rose look pretty. the outer margin of etoile rose is very defined, i think of this clem as a french mani margin.
jackmanii superba , this morning the light was nice for photos for the first time in days.
clematis juuli, first year...very vigorous. and pretty.
CG:
When I think of the joy you have just strolling along checking on the clems and the other plants... Now that is the way to start a morning....
Happy 4th to everyone!
Janet
It's nice to see Juuli and hear it is vigorous. It is near the top of my list.
Your triternata 'Rubromarginata' is a monster. How much space does it take up? I'd love to have it, but I might have trouble siting it.
thank janet you, happy 4th to all. yes back to the morning joy with sunshine to help.
tie dye has had a tough year, half the size of last due to lost stems from snails.there are only 2 stems left, one of which has major snail damage, but recovered enough to produce blooms. not bad for two stems. this one will get preventative snail protection from early spring on next year.
CG, love the tie dye, I'm all about variegated foliage whether it is on the leaf or in the color of the flower...
Janet
i am in love with clematis entel this year. many blooms for a young plant. it is the palest pink clem flower i have.....entrancing clem that i did not expect to be so good.
entel . above post. reminds me of the color of apple blossoms.
this is clematis lady betty balfour, who has been fussy over the years and having her best year ever as far as not wilted stems and many beautiful blooms.
CG I love how it starts out almost like a bell then continues to open until fully open. Really interesting one.
Janet
little ashva, i posted her the other day when i noticed it was blooming. first year, planted in the spring of this year (ssv) and very pretty blooms. next year will be amazing with this one i think. bet this clem will gain in popularity.
arabella, one of two i put in this spring. another clem that will be very vigorous by second year. blooms very pretty. glad to have it in the garden.
arabella is as blue as it looks in the above photo, wanted to mention that.
here is hotaka, very nice for first year. it is blooming with a lady betty balfour that escaped over to be with hotaka. hotaka has a rich but matte color that is a def different and distinctive addition to the garden.
did want to say that for those of you that love the president, lady betty planted nearby will bloom after the president continuing the show of large, blue purple blooms through the summer. lady betty should be in a lot more gardens, it is a great clem.
last post of kermesina, a great new vitacella in my garden that i posted a few days ago.this is a better shot. much richer color than minuet and little nell (which are two of my favorites) so i know kermesina will rise to that favored list in her next year of maturity.
hope i can find foxtrot and tango somewhere to continue this small flowered vitacella collection of similar cultivars.
fist blooms form a very new to my garden scartho gem. it is the real clone, (there are imposters out there) a ssv plant only put in about 4 weeks ago. it will need to be pruned soon, but i will let it bloom a few more days before whacking and feeding it and letting it prepare for more growth.
scartho gem foliage is not as yellow as it looks in the previous post, fyi. but it will appreciate that cut back and feeing i think. hard to believe only in ground here 4 weeks.
for those of you following margaret hunt this year, here is what might be a last post. blooms are waning and i am going to cut it back by 50% this weekend. it has had a long bloom season thru terrifically destructive rains and held up so well.
we will see if it comes back to bloom again after the planned surgery .
this is my number one pick for time to establish, problem free, floriferousness and bloom
period span and longevity of blooms and beauty of color and blooms too. i just put two more into another one of the gardens. for serious clem collectors it is a MUST. if you can not get it now, plan it for next year.
kullus emerged late, but seems vigorous and is budding up for flowering. this clem has been very absent at times with a mind of it's own. so glad to see it looking and feeling good after the hard winter.
monte cassino, first blooms from a plant that went in this spring. notice bug. bugs seem to like the darker clems more this year. this will be a pretty addition next year to the clematis walk garden that goes down to the rockery.
clematis vienetta. not hardy here. planted this year. in a large pot, but it has lept to the hoshi structure. pot will have to be put into garage for winter. will cut it back off the neighbors trellis after it blooms for a while, feed it and keep it low and busy till the winter.
i don't like to overwinter clems in the garage, but this one tole my heart when i saw it.
scared i would end up with a greenhouse and year round gardening. i love the dormant season, it makes it all work for me as well as the clems!
Now I want Arabella.... CG what are you doing to me....Ha ha ha
Janet
It's called addiction. :) It is one of the nicer addictions you can have, though. :)
This has become my new favorite forum for garden pictures. What a treat!
I'm with you Janet about Arabella. Love that blue! and Rubro! WOW! I had no idea it was so gorgeous....
Nancy
clem addiction is a good one, as it is like botany in the bank. you start out with "a purple and a white", you may not even plant or care for your clem correctly. it grows. doesn't blow your mind, but it is alive. you buy more every year. your first clems start paying dividends as they reach 3 , 4 ,5 years old. your collection grows. you learn more, clems come on stronger....it compounds like interest and suddenly you have a nice collection and some mature clems. you find yourself buying fewer other perennials and annuals....paying more attentions to the clems with the knowledge you have gained over the years....and pow your addiction is getting a return on investment and you have created a better garden with more focus and less riffraff....this is the clem addiction, hobby, collector experience....
all good, go for it......
rubro is a must, great filler for climbing roses, with other clems or own it's own. so vigorous, so hardy, so floriferous!
arabella will be dynamite even in second year. this one i posted pic of just went in about 7 weeks ago....one was from bluebird, special ordered by a nursery for me and one was from brushwood.
brushwood has a great selection and great customer service. they are not liners, but well rooted quart pots...well worth the small amount extra.....
hi pam garden, do you have clems?
wrapping up the fourth....deep watering while it rained a light spotty mist. not relying on rain is a big garden lesson i have learned the last few years; unless rainss are soaking and heavy it is not adequate deep hydration for clems..deep watering every 3 or 4 days in hot weather really compounds return on investment with clems.
anyway as bugs chewed me and plants while i finished up , i noticed that the poppies are virtually finished blooming and the giant seedheads are settling into the backside of the propagation process....to dry out and let the plant finish it's job , winding down with the season.
i leave these on stem until you can hear seeds rattle inside the head. then i harvest on a long stem, strip the leaves and place the long stemed seed heads in a vase in the house until march if the new year. in march , i crack the seed heads, mix the soil with sand and distribute them in the area i want them to grow....these poppies need full sun, neglect, drainage, thin porous soil and little water. that is a hard proposition in a garden where pampering is the status quo. one year i was down to one small seed head as the crop was only one plant. have built back up to this motherlode of seed heads. i really appreciate these poppies, have worked hard for 15 years to keep them going from the gift of seeds form a local source, and everything i know about that i have learned the hard way.....you can only imagine their beauty in their natural surroundings in the mid eastern countries. .....
Those seed heads add so much interest to a spot.
I especially love having plants in my garden that 1st have great foliage cause as we all know blooms aren't around all the time, the bloom is next on the list of important qualities and lastly is seed heads. I love all three phases and so enjoy each of them.
This year I'm really concentrating on collecting seeds from all my plants.
Janet
edited for spelling....
This message was edited Jul 5, 2009 10:27 PM
Bananna, I also have plans & a spot for a white garden room. No clems, but at least
I know which ones to buy. THANK YOU CLEM GURE.
confussedlady
my pleasure confussed lady. we are virtual neighbors!
CG, your Rubro Marginata is awesome! It looks like a plant that is covered in stars. Love the colors on Ashva. That isn’t one that I see very often. Seeing your Arabella makes me glad I got one this year; it’s a beautiful blue. Is Hotaka also as blue as it looks in the picture?
Once again, thanks for the wonderful morning tour!
goldf, yes hotaka is a matte kind of color and is very blue. especally against the true purples. i am liking tone on tone combos, i like the way it looks with lady betty b so dark purply blue against the lighter hotaka bloom. hotaka is off to a good start, very encouraging. hope we see more places carry this clem.
thanks for the feedback. appreciate it.