Fertilize Clematis

I would like to know if I should fertilize my clematis? If so what should I use?

So far my clematis is only about 4 inches tall. It is a new one that I got last Fall. I have never grow one and know little about them.

I would think that it should be taller than that by now.

Yes please fertilize....I use either rose or tomatoe fertilizer - the granular kind. It might just be slow to emerge...I am finding that with all my clematis this year. Be patient.

golden eagle, some did emerge slowly this year. dawn is correct, fertilize now and every couple of weeks till flower bud formation begins. then back off till immediately after blooming when you should lightly prune and fertilize again to help the plant restore resources for later or 2010 blooms.
i am in delaware ohio, zone 5 b

Sheesh I never fertilize every few weeks....should I be? I fertilize maybe once or 2x in the spring and that is all.....

I fertilize my whole garden with 13-13-13 then after hard pruning my pruning group 3's which is around Feb 14th I use either Rose or Tomato fertilizer and I don't fertilize again UNTIL I hard prune my pruning group 3's again for round 2 and for my pruning group 2's I fertilize again only after they have finished their early Spring Blooming Period ...Jeanne

I'm hearing "pruning". I've always wondered if I should prune - seemed logical, but I didn't know when or how much. I'd appreciate any information. Thanks, dathen

clems can use several feedings before bud formation after breaking dormancy as well as the balanced formula after blooming and in the fall. adequate fertilizer and keeping up late season deep watering makes a huge difference in the annual results with clems.
results will escalate dramatically if this program is followed.

Dathen, don't listen to Jeanne's pruning regime. Because of her zone, she get's about 15 bloom periods a season from each clematis. ;-).

Ok, that's an exaggeration, lol, but in your zone, you only want to prune group 3's in late winter before the leaf buds break. How much you prune depends on which clematis it is and how much survives and where it is growing. The general rule is 6 " - 1 foot, but may group 3 clematis will die back to the ground.

Group 2's are optional pruning. Depending on how much of the vines survive winter, you can either leave what survived, prune by half or stagger the length of the vines.

I

Julia - thanks for your response. I hadn't noticed that Jeanne was coming from Texas - imagine that could made a difference:) Now I'm really feeling dumb....group 3's and 2's? I planted these 3/4 years ago and I'm trying to put more trellis behind them - but having trouble untangleing them - well, really, it can't be done. I tried earlier in the year before the new leaves came out and they were too brittle. My thought was that they may become more manageable if I just cut them way back. Of course they are in bloom now, so..........but from what I hear you saying, it would be okay to cut them way back this fall or very early spring?

Thanks for your help - I appreciate it. Dathen

Enjoy the blooms now.

The groups are pruning groups. Group 2's bloom in spring, group 3's bloom in summer. There is also a group 1, but I doubt your clematis is a group 1. To confuse you even more, the group 2's can be broken down further into group 2A and 2B. The 2Bs bloom on both last years vines and this seasons vines. You may hear this referred " as blooming on both old and new wood.

To help you determine that, tell us how long has your clematis been blooming? Has it just started or has in been blooming for a couple of weeks.

Gardens are about 2 weeks behind for a lot of people in the north, so my guess is you have a group 2. My group 2's are just starting or about to bloom.

Can you post a photo? We Should be able to help you identify it.

Forgot to mention that once we know what you have, we can tell you how to prune it.

good info is available free on the British Clematis Society website to non members.

it is a great site..and i just joined the group, but have hopped on thier site for info several times over the last few years.

I'm guessing it's a 2. From what I can tell, blooms are on both new and old growth. Well, actually, the blooms are only on the old, but I see some small buds on the new. I'm new to Dave's and haven't posted any photos - don't know how - but I'm searching for information on how to do that - I'm sure it's here somewhere. Once I figure it out, I'll try to post photo. Have to admit that I'm technically challenged. Oh, and the blooms started popping on Sunday.

Guru - thanks, and I'll check out the BCS website. I'm afraid that I tend to buy and plant without first researching.

we all buy and plant without researching...that is part of the journey that really is the destination!

Oh, good grief - it shouldn't be this hard. I tried so many ways to get this image that I'll never remember what actually worked. Hope this helps. It is all falling down into a bunch and I feel like I need to cut so that I can untangle and kinda' start retraining.

Thank you so much!!

Posting an image at Dave's is very simple. (I love that about this site.)

The photos should be yours and on your computer. Click on the browse button. Go to the file where your photos are stored, select the picture you want and click open or ok.

I wasn't able to get too many photos last year, and the ones I did get weren't very good. The flowers in the photo were blooming even after a few light frosts. We were going to have our first hard frost of the year, so I cut the best blooms and put them in a vase. Aren't clematis fantastic?

Dathen..your clematis is "Ville de Lyon"...it is a pruning group 3 and should be hard pruned to just about the 3rd leaf axil from the soil or as some say 6 to 12" from the soil..in late winter/early Spring...this will make it easy to untangle...Jeanne

Yours are beautiful. Yes, I love them - they've actually done much better than I ever expected. I hadn't realized that they bloomed for such a long time.

I had to finally click on the photo itself after clicking on "open". I kept getting information that there was no such file #. I expect that next time it will be much easier :)

Jeanne - I am totally impressed. How did you know that - I don't think I ever knew it's name. I didn't start keeping track of names until about 2 years ago - it is great to know which clematis I have.

I am SO glad that I'll be able to cut it back. Thanks so much.

Ville de Lyon will bloom on both old and new wood. In the future, after you get it untangled, if more than of foot of the vine survives winter, you could leave a few taller than a foot, so you will still have the early blooms.

Julia, that's a good idea. I would expect that it would since the whole thing has been coming back. I think it is now going to be easier to handle. Thank you so much for your help.

You're welcome.
:)

Yup Ville de Lyon...I just put one in last fall but pruned mine almost to the ground and it is coming up just like it should....next year I might leave about a foot before pruning! Just so you know Ville de Lyon is an awesome clematis...at least for my zone....she is so pretty!!!! Yours looks lovely!

oh yeah this is one clematis I would get a second one of....she is nice!

i have posted my ville de lyon so often i wonder if i should re post. but every time i do seems like new folks see it. 8 years plus old. hard pruned after blooming every other year. half and half clean up pruning in late winter. this customized regime on this established ville de lyon gives me earlier blooms, a very healthy plant and year after year consistency in blooms,size and overall vigor.
this is 09. bloom time will be almost 3 months, this is a hard post bloom prune year for her and there will be blooms again in sept on 4 to 5 ft of brand new growth. i do th ehard prune before she has finished blooming as blooms wane in size and quanitity.
this clem is a must for the beginner or collector. full sun location for this one , angelina sedum at base.

I have a Lady Bird Johnson and am looking forward in seeing it bloom, does anyone have this one?

Thank you, Dawn. It is pretty, but the way it just hangs and falls all over doesn't do it justice.

Guru, yours is wonderful! Thanks for the information...it helps a lot.

I started a ville de lyon last year It is small because I have been pinching it back. I am going to try to do exactly like you suggest CG. I hope mine someday looks as good. Do recommend hard pruning every other year for all group 3? What is half and half clean up pruning in winter?

Guru you can post as many photo's as you like and however many times you like....I just love that photo and I always look at it again and again.....I keep dreaming that mine will look like yours one day LOL.

thanks guys. the funny thing is the 09 photos of ville de lyon look just like the 08! very consistent clem.
with a small ville de lyon i would stay with the p 3 guidelines until such time it is established , then you can start pruning it back after initial bloom period for that second flush of blooms. i have a phot o of what the second flush looks like so you can compare.
also a half and half is when you take some of the stems back to half their height or all the way down. this allows blooming on the old wood and encourages development of new growth too. i do this a lot at different ties of the year with different clems.
you can do it in mid spring, taking half the vines to half their height to extend the bloom season, as the ones you took lower will bloom later.
i 'd love to have a lady bird johnson, have tried to order before but never caught it in stock. it is a texensis, prone to powdery mildew and maybe taking awhile to establish then being very vigorous...establishes like a princess diana or etoile rose up here in our zone.
lets get some gardening done!

meant to post that photo of ville after a hard prune after initial blooms. this was her second flush in 07 after the hard prune in early july.photo then from sept 07 after re growth and with second blooms. then in 08 she looked like she always does.

Can anyone tell me how to start a new clematis? Clematis Guru would like one and if you would like one I would be happy to gave you a start.

I'm a newbie, too. Wondering about the hard pruning in July. Most of mine were planted last summer. Of the type 3s, I'm mostly curious about Inspiration which is about to burst with buds and is incredibly lush, and Barbara Harrington which has some small buds on one strong vine and is incredibly tall -- 8 ft already.

My concern is that they are new and might benefit from putting energy to roots rather than encouraging more vines and blooms.

Any advice??

Judy

kellybird, i would do a half hard prune after bloom period and fertilize imediately then. don;t wait till there are no blooms, when blooms are waning in size and amount, go ahead and do it this leaves more summer for the plant to recalibrate and get back on track. you will be rewarded with some late season blooms as well a a heathier, better established plant if you do this.
your conern, which i would call instint is right on target.

that is another garden lessson, trust gut

and another
realize there will be mistakes. not learning form them is the only true mistake.

Thanks Guru! And, I may have pictures to post soon! The Inspiration is so close. Silver Moon is beginning, too. Huge buds!

so funny you mention inspriation...mine just fully opened the first bloom today. i got it at ssv last year and it is having an amazing first year.

should have ordered from their sale before i posted the good news about the 5$ off sale.....
if you can drive a bmw instead of a jalopy, it's worth it..jump starting th egrowth , year two is like year 3 or 4 from a liner root.