What Am I TO Do?

19 years ago

my Clematis is a Carnaby,I beleive a group II.It is now 3years old.It started the spring off pretty good.New leaves ,then flowers and THEN it seemed to poop out.It seems to be almost wilting ,the leaves seem like there turning brown and it just lies almost on the ground.it's not getting any taller and I built this nice trellis for it and it just won't grow to fill it up.

So experts what should I do to perk it up?By the way how long is this supposed to flower.Really at a loss.So please help,I really would appreciate it.

thanks--arnie

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Comments (4)

nckvilledudes
19 years ago
Could be wilt but hard to tell from the description. Then again it could be the brown out phenomenon I see on the type IIs and some type IIIs in my garden during the heat of the summer. Right now there are several in my garden that are quite toasty looking. If it weren't for the fact that I am leaving the plant alone to let the seeds ripen, I would be whacking them back.

If the plant is wilting and watering does not perk it back up, it probably is some form of wilt so I would trim it back to within a few inches from the ground and see if it rebounds. You don't say how many stems you have coming up out of the ground,how many are wilty looking, if all the leaves are brown or if it is just the ones closer to the bottom of the plant with ones further up still green, how the plant was pruned the first couple of years, etc. More info would be helpful in offering more relevant advice.

As to bloom length, that is so variable that I wouldn't venture to guess. I don't have Carnaby but the other type IIs I have can bloom for a month, two months, off and on all summer after the main flush, or if I whack them back after the initial bloom flush, I can get just as long a second bloom late in summer/early fall as I do in the spring. Again, the length of bloom will vary from cultivar to cultivar, growing zone to growing zone, and garden to garden.
buyorsell888
19 years ago
Whack it back to 12-18" and fertilize and water it.

Whack it back that short in early spring too.

Pruning stimulates growth.
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jennie_in_mt
19 years ago
Hey Arnie! Yo can also find information on bloom time etc for this and other clems at the Clematis on the Web site. Tons of great info, an alphabetical listing of varieties with photos, etc.

Here is a link that might be useful: Clematis on the Web
nckvilledudes
19 years ago
Jennie, just realize that most of the bloom time info on COTW is based on data from gardens in England. Unless you live in the PNW, the growing conditions here will not be anything like those in England and your bloom times will be vastly different from what is listed.

COTW is still a great reference though and I recommend it to everyone. Participation in their clematis survey from people in all areas will allow collection of info about clematis that will be multi-national so I encourage everyone who can to participate.