My gardens are at their very best in May. The rhodies and azaleas are in full bloom. The roses are starting to bud and will bloom by the end of the month. The tiniest wood violets are showing their pretty little faces. And the clematis around my front arbor is stunning in its abundant blossoms.
I love clematis. They give such beauty to the garden and add the element of height as well. They come in all sorts of colors, from white and the palest pinks to deep purple and almost blue. And the blossoms come in all sizes. A very pretty large-flowering vine is called Clematis ‘Fireworks’ which has blossoms up to eight inches across. This one blooms from spring into early summer and has star-shaped purple flowers with a reddish accent stripe down the center of each petal. The vines grow to twelve feet tall, so need a good support for climbing.
Then there are the small and delicate clematis like C. armandii ‘Apple Blossom.’ These bloom in great abundance and are lovely. The clematis on the arbor is C. armandii 'Warwick Rose' and it has delicate four-petal blooms that number in the hundreds. It is spreading into the alder as well as the euonymus next to it. And it covers the arbor in such a lovely pink color that it makes me smile as I duck my head to avoid bumping into the flowers as I come or go up the walk.
And then there are the bell-shaped C. ‘Roguschi’ and the evergreen C. ‘Montana.’ So many choices. So much to learn … but so worth the effort of learning!
Clematis are a varied and complicated group of flowers. While I can give some basic information here, I suggest you go online and explore the more than 1000 species and cultivars of this versatile plants. There is also a very good book by Portland writer Linda Beutler called Gardening with Clematis. My personal library also has Clematis; Inspiration, Selection and Practical Guidance by Charles Chesshire. But there are many other books written about this popular plant. Just be sure you find one with good photos and instructions of how to grow them.
You see, there are three basic classifications of clematis (more if you are a specialist) and each has its own schedule for pruning and care. In Pruning Group 1 we have the Early-Flowering Species and Hybrids, including evergreen clematis, the spring-flowering atragenes, and the Montanas. These are easily cared for and only need an occasional light pruning right after they bloom in early to mid-spring. Always leave some younger shoots that will regenerate better than the older, woodier growth.
Pruning Group 2 consists of the Large-Flowered Hybrids that bloom in the early-summer. This is the group we recognize as being the “typical” clematis: large, star-shaped blooms in vibrant colors. Yellow and orange are the only two colors not found in this group. They need only a light pruning, generally, but these can become a mass of old stems and dead flowers so they are best pruned in late winter early spring when you can see the new buds emerging. Remove the old stems and shoots that are spindly, leaving the vigorous and healthy stems.
And Pruning Group 3 are the Late-Flowering Species, including the Jackmanii group. Similar to the early-flowering group in shapes and colors, these are rarely double or striped and they bloom in mid- to late summer. Also in the third pruning group are other late-flowering species and the plants with small flowers. Some in this group also die back in the fall and can be easily cut back then. One of the sub-groups - Orientalis - can be yellow in color and look like small lanterns. This group should be hard-pruned from the fall to late winter, cutting them back to within four inches of the ground. If you have to wait until late winter to prune this group, new shoots may be forming, so only prune to just above the strongest of the shoots.
In general, clematis prefer as much sun as you can give them, but they do like their roots to be kept cool. Planting them in such a way that the base of the plant is covered with other plants is ideal. They do like moist soil - making them ideal in Tillamook - but the soil also needs to be well-drained, so loamy or even sandy soil will work. I have a couple of clematis in large pots with trellises to climb and they seem very happy. I do feed the potted ones at least once a month with an all-purpose flower fertilizer.
In short, clematis are a wonderful, diverse group of plants that belong in every garden, be it small, large, or only patio-sized. With a little bit of research, you can find an ideal easy-to-grow clematis to add color and interest to your garden.
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