I was at a small nursery today and saw "Liberation" along with some others on sale for $10. - down from $22. when I was there 2 or 3 weeks ago. Since I had never seen it mentioned on this forum, I came home and checked it on PF. Pirl, I see that you have it - would you be kind enough to give me your opinion, please? The shot of yours looked beautiful. Easy to grow? A #2, I see.
Thanks, Dathen
Clematis - "Liberation"
dathen, not sure if i should chip in on his with my 2 cents worth. i have had it in the ground about 18 months. it is slower to grow to a good size than many, but the blooms are large and nice. nice dark green foliage.
it is a good front of border clem, on a shorter support, like a piece of fencing if you know what i mean (about 18 inches high) it can sprawl and fill in in front of some more vigorous clem. i have had no issues with wilt, brown off, tanturms etc with it.
guru - your opinion is always welcomed!! I just don't remember seeing it mentioned. No tanturms is the best news. I think for the price and the size of the plant II may go ahead and get a couple. They also had Margret Hunt, Clare deLune) (?), Confetti, and a few others. To be truthful, I don't seem to be leaning toward the really large clems. A few will be nice - but I like the looks of the smaller, more controlled looking ones too.
Glad you're home, and I'm soaking up all the new information. So grateful that you're sharing.
Dathen
thanks dathen. some questions and comments made me realize i need to temper my type 3 pruning advice mid season pruning advice for some and younger less established clems.........you know how much i love margaret hunt, confetti is off to a great start here.....claire de lune is a slow starter, eventually beautiful blooms but for me a long haul to get it established.
little pink confetti is really sweet, but could be big clem. they are all great clems for 10$
I don't think you need to temper your advice; it is always appreciated. Just because you give it doesn't mean that it's gospel. Neither is my advice or anyone elses because there are so many variables. kwim? We can't consider every variable, there are so many, but we can share an awful lot with each other, right? We're all better for it. Even the "experts" you met over the weekend are still learning.
I think that the best way to figure out what works is to realize there is no magic bullet, but what is most important is to accept that if we want the best out of our gardens, we have to be willing to spend time with the plants because we learn so much by just paying attention, also trusting our instincts, and trying new things. kwim?
I can't wait to make better planting holes again and went out today and started cutting back the G3s that need a little jacking up ;-)
thanks jj. one thing i have learned is that i learn best from my own mistakes. so i will share the results of this mid season's hard pruning, hoping that the info helps others......
and i agree, hand on doing and learning and knowing your garden and plants is a one of a kind experience to be savored and enjoyed.
and we can keep looking for that magic bullet and let each other know when we find it for sure....or think we have found it!
the tulip auger on the cordless drill was a real boost today. i augered the bottom of the holes with some amendments, pushing it down and roughing up the bottom a few more inches.
i am investigating larger, motorized augers for hole drilling.
appreciate your clemship jj.......
Well said JJ! We hang onto your every word CG :-) !!! I love the auger idea and will be looking into it as well as that could be just the answer. Please do not "temper" any advice. I am sure many of us newbies would agree, we want to know everything you more experienced clemmers have learned and HECK NO I don't want to make the same mistakes! Questions asked are often because some of us, well me for sure, want to do everything exactly right and trust your and others advice and want to be sure we understand explicitly! Ultimately, as JJ said so well, there is no magic bullet, but learning from those who have gone before only makes sense to me! Thanks to you both and to everyone who contributes to this forum. The augers, alfalfa pellets, lever loops, bug getta,collars, etc....are things I would never have thought of. In a few short months I feel I have learned far more from everyone here than searching the info out on my own, hard to research something if you don't have a clue about it...In all aspects of life (is there anything else in life but clems??? just kiddin') I think it is valuable to listen and learn from others. All of us here should know there are so many variables involved in clemming and that we appreciate each others time and kindess and willingness to share information so that we all can have beautiful and healthy clems in our own gardens. That's what this is all about, helping each other and the friendships and trusts involved. No need to worry about what/how things are taken...Just maybe you should consider a workshop for all of us! Well I guess that is sorta what we have going on here! PLEASE keep up the flow of information, I love it!
Thanks, Nancy
Ditto to what Nancy says. And to what JuliaJayne says. I have appreciated every bit of informatiion that I have garnered from this forum. I knew nothing about clematis when I came here and know absolutely that I would never have bought another one if I hadn't come to this forum and I can't tell you the amount of enjoyment I've had this summer just reading about and learning how beautiful they can be.
As far as applying every bit of information to our own gardens, do any of us? I take what looks like works and try it on the areas that need improvement. If I have plants that look as if they are doing great on their own, I leave them alone. If they are just hanging in, not paying for their space, I either try to move, improve, or put them in the compost pile. I've moved plants around all my life trying to find the right environment, the right soil, the right amount of water, etc. And even doing that, some plants just don't thrive.
If someone can teach me a better way to do something, I'm thankful. If the plant still doesn't do well, I don't blame the teacher. If it had shown promise where it was, I wouldn't have been working on it in the first place - so no loss. On the other hand, isn't it a beautiful thing when, with a little advice, you get it right the first time.
I'm rambling. Just want to say, "Thanks to all." And don't change anything.
Dathen - I love my Liberation, sold (long ago, end of season, $2.99) in a cardboard package with the name Tateshina. It was very easy to grow and I didn't want to start off by feeding it and then have a frost nip it so I just planted it in our own compost and it's always been a pleasure.
Ditto on mistakes being our best teacher, CG. I've made my share of them.
I'm curious about using an auger. Did anyone explain why they put nutrients lower than 18 inches? What depth will the roots eventually reach?
The auger gave me the idea of using a post hole digger to get the hole started and hitting the 18 inch depth easier than it would be with a shovel. The hole would have to widened with a shove, of course, but it might make things easier.
We have an auger and it's a great way to make the hole to start the planting operation for a clematis but please wear protective eyeglasses (think of the stones you could be hurling) and be very careful going in reverse. The speed is such that one friend suffered a sprained wrist when using the reverse feature.
Good safety tip, but unfortunately, mine is manually operated. The reason I'm going to use it is to give my elbow some relief from the repetitive motion of digging.
Pirl - thank you. Your plant looks beautiful and lush. I've decided to buy 2 Liberations and 1 Margaret Hunt. And then, no more looking. I still am working on a new iris bed because someone gave me irises that need to go in the ground and I've run out of space.
It covers both sides of this fence.
Space is always a major concern.
My husband keeps asking, "Where are you going to put more?" I hadn't thought of a fence - we have LOTS of room to put fences. LOL
Husbands seem to adapt after they see the beauty in the garden. I used to get the same question but I guess he got tired of hearing himself ask the same question for years and now he just enjoys the gardens.
hey guys, there are planting augers to dig the the holes that are bigger than the tulip auger i am using to churn up the bottom of the hole and mix nutrients down low.....the tulip auger has been great yesterday and today.
i am going to research the bigger augers when i have a second. i am lucky this year i have has a good helper and he has dig far better holes than i ever have had. jj my clay is so stiff in places i am trying to get the good stuff as deep as possible and as much of it as possible so the rot can grow and grow without hitting the walls of clay so to speak. my tulip auger is easy to handle on a cordless drill and did a good job at the bottom of the holes.
one thing i have learned is that i have the holes dug, or i dig them in advance i do a much better job planting than when i try and dig, mix soil and plant all at once. when the holes are ready in advance i can spend my time focusing on the soil mixture and planting properly. i store the soil from the holes in large nursery pots in a far corner of garden supplies. this way i can handle the size and weight of the 3 to 5 gallon nursery pots with the soil from the holes and mix it with the amendments one wheelbarrow at a time. that is exhausting enough. the times i have dug at the same time, i never did as good a job with the other steps just based on time and exhaustion.
i am having holes dug as far as months in advance and leave them empty till i am ready to plant them out. this has really helped me maximize my helpers time and my own time for better quality and enjoyment.
My husband has a gasoline powered hole digger that digs pretty big holes. I asked him about using it to dig some holes for clematis. He said that he'd rather dig the holes by hand than find it in the barn and put gas in it, etc. He said that he wouldn't want to use it near trees. So, as long as he's willing to dig.........whatever suits him best. The only problem is that I hate asking someone else for help.
I bought 2 Liberations on Sunday. The one that remembered as Margaret Hunt was lableled as Barbara Harrington - my bad memory. Anyway, the woman sold them to me as 2 for $15....they're in 1 gallon containers. She said that she was trying to close down that section. I haven't put them in the ground yet because I HAVE to get those iris planted. I almost finished that today.
I have an old wrought iron and wood bench that I plan to put in one end of a garden and let the Liberations grow up over the seat and the back if they'll reach that far. Would that look ok?
dathan, i like the bench idea. i have an old one with one broken bottom raining, but it is not near any clems, it is next to a small perennial area. if i put clems in that area eventually i could consider this too. start on the sides so someone could sit in the middle in the early years as the clems grow.....
Thank you, Guru. Finally getting a little rain - hope it keeps coming.
Bump.
Dathen - how are your Liberation clematis performing for you?
I like the bench idea! I will be on the lookout for those benches. I am always looking for new ideas for clematis supports. Dathen, do you have pictures that you can share now?
Me, too. I'd love to see how it looks.
Hi everyone, I'm afraid that my Liberations have done nothing. One died all the way back but came back again this spring and the other one has not grown much and has never bloomed. I have almost no sunny places and clematises don't seem to be doing well.
I've planted about 25 clematises in the last couple of years and have only had blossoms on one of them - at least 8 have died. I've given up on trying to get them to grow. I've done everything that I thought I should for them, but guess my shade is just too much. But I come to this forum fairly often and enjoy all of yours'.
Dathen
Sorry to hear it, Dathen. The best for shade here are Nelly Moser, Candida, The President, Jackmanii and the Duchess of Edinburgh. They get by with either morning or afternoon sun but not hours of it.
Did you try feeding them, Dathen? I'm not big on playing nursemaid to them but it might be worth a try.
Would you have any interest in potting up some of them for the spots where you do have sun?
I need to move my Jackmanii then. If it does not like full sun then that might be why it is not blooming well. I planted one last year and one this year.
My Jackmanii in full sun, with the compost pile behind it, does best of all. Another in full sun doesn't do as well but still very good. The poorest performer is in part shade but I still enjoy the look of it. Here it is:
Nice Pirl. I have to dig up my Ville de Lyon in a few weeks so I can have siding put on. I guess I will just stick in a pot for now.
Pirl, I have been feeding them - also composting and mulching. I really think that it's the shade factor. The only sun I have is in the open areas of the yard - just grass. I did put one in a large container last year on my back porch in an area that gets a little sun each day. It did fairly well this year, but only one small bloom.
Actually, the one that I had blooms on was Candida. Perhaps I will try the others that you mentioned and see how they do. Thanks for the suggestions.
Dathen
Many clematises only perform well with 4 to 6 hours of direct sun with roots protected from the sun. I hope you find more successes in your clematis future, Dathen.
Candida in shade:
Thanks, Pirl. That's a wonderful picture.