Dedith, if your soil doesn't drain well in the one hole where you can plant the clematis in the ground, I think potting the clematis up is the best solution. The only clematis that I know of that likes constantly wet feet is clematis crispa which is sometimes known as bog clematis. Digging a deeper hole in your area might help somewhat in terms of drainage but potting the clematis up will definitely solve the issue. Also, an 18 inch square area is really too small for two clematis.

I think that I would do as you did however I would have used two large containers, one for each of your clematis. Both of these clematis are relatively new introductions and I am unsure how large they could potentially grow over the years in terms of both top growth and root growth. Putting them each into separate large pots would have at least given you more assurance down the road that they wouldn't be competing in the same pot. Also, in your zone 9 climate, you will probably have to water potted clematis every day in the hottest part of the summer if not more frequently. Putting the clematis in separate pots would have at least helped cut down on the amount of water required.

I have a lot of Clematis in containers and agree with the above post. My complaint about container growing Clematis is the drain holes tend to get filled with roots to the point that drainage is severely restricted, causing root rot. This spring I will replant my containers and try to come up with a way to prevent this problem. Al

Al, don't know what type of containers you use but if you use that lightweight material that can look like terracotta or similar material or even plastic pots, you can drill holes in the sides of the pot down near the bottom of the pots. That way you can see if the water is draining well or not. I assume the same could be done to actual clay pots provided that you use a masonry bit to do the drilling. Lining the pot with landscape fabric may also prevent the roots from filling the holes and still allow for drainage.

Hey guys, thanks for the tip. My 3 containers on my other clematis are big 23x20 (Durandii, Ville de Lyon and Niobe with F. Marie) but I will drill holes in the sides of the pot as advised. They are still young, no more than 2 years old in my garden but I will drill them now. I don't use clay pots but the heavy stones but I have one light foam like from Home Depot for Blue Light only 18x15. Do you recommend moving Blue Light to a bigger one?

Dedith, I think the bigger the pot the better. Eventually you will have to move it to a larger pot so you can do it now or wait until later. Remember that the larger the pot, the less watering you will have to do in the midst of summer. I have Blue Light that was purchased three years ago in a one gallon sized pot. The plant already reaches about 3 1/2 to 4 feet in height but it grows up to the top of my trellis and then falls back down and over the sides of the trellis. In my zone, and very probably in your zone, my ground planted Blue Light will get brown and crispy in the middle of summer due to the heat and humidity. I just cut it back to a foot or so and in a few weeks to a month it is back in bloom again. This one blooms for me just about the whole season except for when it gets brown and crunchy and I give it a severe haircut. Here are a few spring and late summer pictures of mine.

Early Spring

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Late Summer

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Miguel thanks for the idea of drilling the side of the container, I could have done that during the summer. My containers are clay but they will drill OK. I will repot them anyway to clean up any damaged roots. Al

Miguel, your pictures are awesome. I got hooked with Clemmies but now more so coz of the beautiful, lovely, lovely pictures your share with us. Keep them coming, we can't get enough of them. Please recommend a Clematis book applicable to my California zone 9 weather. All I have are books from UK authors.

Dedith, get Edith Malek's book "Simply Clematis". It deals with growing clematis in the California climate. She points out some interesting tidbits about how some double flowering clematis won't flower as doubles in parts of California due to the lack of a cool period in the winter--something important for people who are trying to grow certain double flowering clematis in warm climates and aren't having any luck getting double flowers.

Thanks for the compliments about the pictures. More will come in the spring as the flowering resumes.

Al, glad to be of help. I had the same problem with several of my larger composite pots not draining due to the roots blocking the bottom drain holes and drilling the side holes helped me in my situation.

Hi. I'm wondering if clematis grown in containers come back every summer. We want to put one on our deck to climb a trellis that my husband built near the wall of the house. We are in North Carolina. The wall faces south, and there is forest about 30-40 feet away. Any suggestions as to what type of clematis would do well here?