clematis in pot

I have 2 questions. Can a clematis do well in a pot? And have any of you made hypertufa pots? I read where they are expensive at garden shops but I have never seen them. The cost of garden pots/containers is so high making my own is appealing. I use baskets from thrift stores for some of my containers. For $1.25, if they only make it thru one summer I am still happy w/ little investment for cute pots.

i have seem many beautiful clemtis in pots.
i agree with you about those expensive pots. i do the same thing. my new thing for very large pots is i buy those big buckets with the rope handles sold at walmart and drill holes in the bottom, for $5. you can't go wrong.

I have been making hypertufa pots this year, and am very pleased with them. I use a mix of equal parts of Portland cement, perlite, and fine peat moss. We have used forms to make square ones, and I have also used free form ones. There are lots of hypertufa sites on the internet. Do a search on google and it will bring up tons of info and pictures.

Glenda

I made a small hypertufa pot, it was fun! they have to cure for a while before you can plant in them, so it would be a great winter project for next year.

Gads, my list of "things to do" is growing. Now that I know real people have made them and you are real? lol. I want a large pot for my front stoop and $80 and up and I keep thinking it would get stolen and so on and so forth. Another question. I have a very large, huge black plastic pot/tub my Redspire flowering Pear tree came in from the nursery. It is such a heavy type of plastic that I have kept it thinking to do some huge container gardening in it. I am thinking of spray painting it with that paint for plastics. Ideas? Looking for advice, free, of course. There is so much talent and imagination out there in Dave's Garden. Thank you.

How creative do you want to get with it? You can sponge paint it with acrylic paints and clear coat it, stencil it,
use that granit paint stuff on it, paint a scene on it, cut sticks to height and use rope to hold them to the pot so it looks like it is made of sticks. wrap it with bamboo slat fencing or old bamboo blinds cut to size so the pot is hidden....you can rough it up with coarse sand paper and decopauge it...cover it with tile mosaic or small rocks. Paimt it with a heavy coating of varnish and roll it in loose sand while it is still very wet so it looks like sandstone...Hmmmm...

Here is a picture of my clematis from the co-op --- it about to open and I am sure it will don fine in this pot.

Anastatia: You could also use that big pot as a form for hypertufa. You could either use the inside or outside, and build the hypertufa up and make your very own pot. If you look in the picture I posted above, the pot at the back left was a freeform pot built over top of the outside of a huge upside down tub. We had a bit of trouble with it as it kept slumping, but that was one of our first attempts, and we now know you have to have the tufa much drier. I use the inside and outside of pots. I have seen people use wicker baskets, just about anything!!!! There are two great books about hypertufa. One is called Creating and Planting Garden Troughs, by Joyce Fingerut and Rex Murfitt. The other is Creating with Concrete, by Sherri Hunter. The first is more to do with hypertufa, the second is a wonderful book of ideas and pictures, and some hypertufa.

Glenda :>)

By the way, hypertufa only needs to be cured for a month. Once you unmold it, it should be wrapped in plastic and put away somewhere out of the sun. After a month of curing, unwrap and plant away!!!! ON the other hand, I have planted within a few days of making a pot, and have had no ill effects on plants.

Glenda

You all are amazing! What is that technique called, from Star Trek or ?, when one puts ones head against the head of another person, and the one with all the creativity and genius is transferred into he/she with less, much less? Soon as I figure out all the details I will be contacting each of you. Maybe I should change my name from Anastatia to "Sponge" ? You are wonnerful, wonnerful! And generous with your ideas and talent. I read these posts in a fast-mode and get so overwhelmed with ideas and possibilities that I have to slow down and shift down and re-read at a rate that retains more info.and makes note taking possible so I can refer back to this advice at a latter date. Again,
THAAAAAAAAAAAAAANK YOU!

I actually have a bit of a "pot fetish"!! I love beautiful pots! I try to get all of mine when on sale at the end of the season or beat em' down for pots that are slightly damaged!!! A chip here or there doesn't bother me. One of my best buys is a wonderful stone urn which I bought at a country moving sale. It was full of soil & dead plants & the gentleman who was running the sale, emptied it out for me to bring home! Weighed a ton, but well worth the struggle for a mere $10.00 plus I can leave it outside, in place all year round no matter the weather. I've used everything from baskets to wood to stone to cast iron to plastic as containers. I even considered using my grandson's small, plastic training potty to add a bit of humor!!
I would love to try to make a Hypertufa pot. Everytime I hear the recipe on a gardening show, I write it down & then I can't find it when the time comes!! I've heard that these are particularily good for small Alpines such as Hens & Chicks & such or small cactus.
I really enjoy container gardening & trying different combinations of plants each year. I've found that you can make some very attractive, interesting little scenes with containers at different heights.
The chair in this pic that I've posted actually came out of someones garbage!! I admit it....I'm a "dumpster diver"!!! Brought it home, spray painted it a terra cotta color & am quite pleased with the results. Recycling at it's finest!!
Great to get so many ideas here on new things to try. Thanks all!!!

i did the thing with moss between the pots to keep feet cool and my clemtis is doing realy well. thanks for the tip

regarding this thread start 'growing clemtis in pot' .
i have a question.. i started my clemetis in a pot just this year. it is doing well.. was started late spring..has one bloom but should i prune to encourage new growth for next year? I have seen this discussed in clemetis in the ground, in thier first year of growth .