Tammy, clematis are a lot like other plants in that they sleep the first year, creep the second, and leap the third. The first year you should not be concerned if the plant doesn't do much especially since you purchased it as an abused plant from the store. The first year with clematis you want the plant to concentrate on establishing its roots. Provided you give it water, nutrients, and have potted it correctly, it should be doing just that. Clematis are like tomatoes in that they should be planted several inches deeper than they were in their original pot. This buries dormant nodes that can come into play should the plant be knocked back by wilt or if the main stems are cut back too far. The buried nodes also give rise to new stems from underground which will make your clematis bushier rather than having one or just a few stems coming up from ground level.

As to how to overwinter it, that depends on how big of a pot you planted it in, how the pot is oriented, and what variety you planted. Please post the size pot, where it sits (north, south, east, west) and what variety you planted and I will be more than glad to answer your question as to how to winter it.

I have the same question regarding winter care. My Jackmanii Clematis is on the NW side of the house in an 18" pot. Also, is this a big enough pot? I want to grow it on my deck to cover a pergola. There is no area for planting into the ground unfortunately so a pot is my only choice.

My Clemintis is on the Northside on my deck. It is purple not sure what it is I think it is the most common all the tag said was purple clementis. It was in a six it pot ot is now in a 5 gallon pot. The intention is to plant a low growing plant with it when it takes off.
There is a piece of lattice potted with it to provide it a place to grow.

Tammy, you will probably be okay overwintering your clematis outside this winter in its 5 gallon pot. I am going to guess that you probably have a Jackmanii clematis which is eventually going to get too big for its five gallon sized pot. I would move it up into a pot that is at least 2 feet tall and wide in the spring when it begins breaking dormancy. Keeping it in a pot that is too small will severely limit its eventual size and will require frequent watering in the summer.

Victoriany, you are probably on the borderline of your clematis surviving outside based on your location of NY. Since I don't know exactly where you live in NY and how severe your winters are, it is sort of hard to tell. Again, I would recommend moving your plant into as large a container as possible so that it will have a large enough space to reach its mature size.