When to make a move?

18 years ago

Hi. just wondering how you feel about moving clematis? I have two clematis that are east facing in the front of my home. These Clematis have been in this spot for about 3 maybe 4 years and still they only shoot up one or two climbers and then maybe one bloom.

I amthinking that it is time to make a move, but I really don't have another spot picked, or lets say the light either. I have an empty wooded lot next to our lake lot and it gets some filtered light, but not a ton. I had put two clems in this area last year and they looked really bad at the end of the year and I pulled them and putthem into a baby bed, to wait and see.. I am still waiting, but it is early here. We just had a light snow again two days ago. So i will see.

But as far as these other two low preformers, should I move them? If I move them, would/should I treat them as babies again and cut back growth?

I love clems and I would love more roses, but on my lot there is no spot that actually gets more than 5 hours of sunlight a day. When the fron has the morning sun, the back still has dew. When the back has full blazing hot sun, then the front is fairly shadey with little filtered.

At least I can drool over everyone elses pics.

Laura

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Comments (4)

nckvilledudes
18 years ago
It definitely sounds like the two in their present location don't like where they are at. Which two are they? When you got them how big were they and how well established were they? Did you plant them deeper in the ground than they were in their pots? Have you kept them watered and fertilized (when, how much, and with what do you fertilize) and are there nearby plants that are competing with them for the available water and nutrients?

There are so many things that could be affecting your clematis and without knowing any of the specifics it is sort of difficult to ascertain what is going on. One thing is certain and that is that they don't like where they are growing now. I would move them to a place where they can get the most sun that you can give them even if it means placing them in the full blazing sun, I would amend the soil with compost before planting, plant them deeper in the ground that they are now, keep them mulched and watered well, and see what happens. When you transplant them, I would also cut them back to within a couple of inches of the ground. This will make transplanting them easier and might shock them into putting out more shoots.

As to when to transplant, you know your growing conditions better than I and the plants sound really unhappy where they are. If you have a long cool spring that is relatively wet or if you could supply the moisture, then I would do it as soon as possible to get them settled in before summer arrives.
jeanne_texas
18 years ago
Laura..you might want to consider "Limbing-up" those trees and thinning out some branches to get more sun in that area..Jeanne
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mamoo_z5
18 years ago
Move them soon while they are still somewhat dormant. Take as big a root system as you can & do put them about 4" deeper than they sit now. I have moved many in early spring & they do great.
maryann_____chgo
18 years ago
Good answer, Jeanne. Tree canopies get wider and denser each year and we often don't realize how much light we're losing. Most plants grow more vigorously if they get enuf sunlight.

After twenty some years, our trees are larger than we ever dreamed, there's shade everywhere, and I've thinned and limbed them up as far as I dare to climb on my ladder . . . resulting in high bright shade. Great for hosta, not so good for clematis.