I was tickled to hear from so many fellow clematis lovers about their passions for the perennial climber that splays such scrumptious flowers. I also heard your confusion over pruning — the when and how-to of it. Do you cut the vine to the ground in the spring or only back to the emerging buds…
Category: vines
Clemactic joys and sorrows: I need a clematis-growing support group
An editor I work with does not like her writers to use phrases like clematisaholic or clematisphile and I’m on-board with that — it does seem to make light of very real and serious issues. That said, this week alone I purchased ‘Carnaby’ (sometimes reported as zone 5) and ‘Venosa Violacea’ and transplanted Clematis Virginiana…
My vote for clematis of the year: ‘Guernsey Cream’!
So, it’s quite early in the season, but I am already declaring the clematis ‘Guernsey Cream’ as the clematis, the flowering vine, and perhaps the perennial of the year for zone 4. Look at it and this is May 4th! Now, of course, given the year, this would probably be blooming closer to the end…
Climbing up and spilling over
Plants that climb to the sky and and plants that spill to the earth are very dramatic performers in the garden and some of my favorite flora to incorporate into a space. Climbers transform a space like nothing else as they draw the garden visitors eye up, transforming the entire garden picture. Spillers soften hard edges…
I’m thinking of clematis a lot lately as we look to planting time
Whatever you are looking for in a perennial flowering vine, there is a clematis to help you out. Most require as much sun as possible, consistent watering, and cool roots. Planting a 12 to 18 inch plant at the base of the clematis will accomplish this. Clematis need a little lateral help to reach their…
“Comtesse de Bouchaud”: A Clematis for Nearly Full-Shade!
We shade gardening fools know that flowering vines that tolerate shade are few and far between. Well, I have numerous buds on a newly planted ‘Comtesse de Bouchaud’ Clematis, in two separate shady spots, and I am “to the moon!” ‘Comtesse de Bouchaud’ is the variety of clematis that likes a hard pruning to the…
Clematis ‘Guernsey Cream’
So much fun comes from finally seeing the true color of a plant you picked out at the garden center. I planted this Clematis ‘Guernsey Cream’ last summer and have been waiting for the bloom to arrive. Having grown-up on a farm, I had my own idea of what the color ‘Guernsey Cream’ would be,…
Boston Ivy puts on a show
The classic look of ivy covered walls really comes to life in the fall, when adorned with Boston Ivy. Boston Ivy is a long-lived, rather fast growing perennial vine, and a great choice if you want the ivy-walled look. It’s perfect on this brick apartment building a happened upon in south Minneapolis. I wouldn’t recommend…
Garden Drama 