Help - clematis turns black and crispy

I have several clematis and the only ones I am happy with is jackmani and the autumn that is growing over everything. LOL.....The rest of them start out fine and look good and sometimes bloom, but then turn compeletely black and crispy. I have had them for years and I am ready to rip them all out and give up. Can someone help me save them? I love clematis in the books just not at my house. I have purchased them from Costco and nurserys. HELP

when black ish, cut off at soil level.
try and water from the ground only, not leaf water in general. keep nipping the bad shoots and letting the plant re grow.it is developing immunity and strength to fight it's internal virus. it can succeed if you use good hygiene and get rid of the blackish stems asap.
certain clems do not like to be trained or forced too upright and letting them have their way vs tieing vines in straight up may help in certain plants. the vascular system can not support the growth. usually this type of die back is a dark brown, but in either case, get rid of it at ground level and keep watering and caring for the plant even if you can't see it. eventually most of them have the immunity and stop the nonsense.
don't give up!

niobe, thanks for the help.

you are welcome. also, the plants form cost co and some nurseries are very small, in some cases not mature enough to be planted in the garden. the amount of water and care they will need is high vs when they are older.
more mature plant roots are available from silver star vinery among others. shipping can be nominal at silver star and you will be amazed with the difference in plant vigor and overall growth with plants from here vs big box nurseries. that said, all of us have bought clems form the big box places when we see a good buy or a variety we do not have , so just make sure you are giving them what they need in the early years for rewards later.

I cut them off today and threw away the black stuff. The worst one seems to be duchess of edinburg I have it in two seperate places. These are several years old now, probably at least 4 years old. I use to think it was because I wasn't watering enough but this spring and up to middle of summer we had rain almost every 3 to 4 days and the clematis in the middle of all the rain did the same thing that it does every year. It grows looks good will even bloom a little and then without warning it turns black and crispy. I am noticing it is sending up new sprouts and blooms again. My Mom doesn't seem to have this problem so I figured I must be doing something not right. After this many years I am would like to see green vine instead of dead stuff on the trellis all summer long. Don't mind not having blooms if the vine would just stay green. Next year I will keep close watch and the first sign of trouble I will cut it off, water, and watch.

you got it. always go for a healthy plant,even at the expense of the upcoming blooms. what good is a bloom or two on an unslightly plant or a wall of brown post blooms stems. if the plant looks bad, it needs help and will respond accordingly!!!!

I just found this thread and would like to heartily thank you for that information. I too have a couple of clematis that is doing the same things. Drives me bonkers. I thought it was me and glad to know someone else is having the same problems. The two that end up that way are a white one and a red one. I lost the tags and wasn't smart enough to mark them so I have no idea to the names. I planted them 3 years ago and they have done the same thing for three years. The two purple ones I put on the same oblisk do not do that and are beautiful most of the times.

I just recently picked up 3 Jackmanii's and one Silvermound clematis (well within the last couple months). Any idea of how and when to prune these? Fall or spring?

you will enjoy learning about clematis on the web. go to "clematis on the web" and gather much info on your varieties, photo id help for your unlabeled ones. i am not familiar with "silvermound".

I too have this problem with my "Polish Spirit" this summer. It bloomed the best it ever had in the spring, too, so I know it was very healthy. Last year, it even rebloomed. On my own, I had started pruning off the black and crispy vines already. Would Daconil, a fungicide, help?
RatherB

not familiar with daconil, but physan (recommended by the american clematis society) is good. clean your nippers after each plant. you can spread it if it is really wilt and not just damaged or tired vines. wither way it should recover.
there is another thread somewhere re powdery mildew that has other tips.