Bonemeal or Growmore and well rotted manure. Bonemeal as top dressing

Hmm, going to disagree a bit, sorry Inverglen - I'd use fish, blood and bone in the hole with the manure, and fish blood and bone as a top dressing, lightly forked in each spring. Unless there are cats about, when I'd substitute Vitax Q4 as a top dressing so you don't have every cat in the neighbourhood digging around, attracted by the fish blood and bone...

Bamboo, what you have said is exactly what I would do myself because I use blood,fish and bone all the time and always have it at hand but what i wrote is what the British Clematis Society recommend so I decided to write bonemeal. Anyone using either of our recommendations would be fine.

Good luck with the planting Hollybush1

Don't forget the slug pellets too otherwise all of this could be a waste of time.

I'm glad we're of one mind on this then, Inverglen - I used bonemeal for some years (as recommended by most gardening books and, more importantly, my Dad) - until I did an RHS course and the lecturer told us it was a waste of time... see my blog on Bonemeal if you're interested...