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Edinburgh, Scotland

Clematis help....my C. Alpina Helsingborg has had a bad day!!!
The kittens were chasing a mouse around the border and it scrambled under the clematis for protection. In their excitment they have managed to break of most (all but 1) of the shoots very near ground level.
It was only planted in the ground on the 20th of June and just started to produce flower buds.
As this is a group 1 clematis I should not have been pruning. What can I do? Thanks for any help.




Answers

 

Poor little mouse :-(

There's not a lot you CAN do now, Scottish, just nurture that last stem, place obstacles around the base to keep the kittens away from it.

I have cats and i know how awful it is when they chase mice, birds and frogs around - make sure that you have plenty of hiding places for the garden wildlife - leave hidey-hole type refuge for them, poor things.

29 Jul, 2011

 

Hi Angie oh dear your pour little clematis.

For now why dont you dig it up and let it grow on in a pot till a bit bigger.

Good luck.

29 Jul, 2011

 

Thanks Louise and Kath for your advice.
I already have another 3 in pots I am trying to 'save' Kath. Pesky cats!!!
I have some bamboo roll which I will use to surround the base.
Do either of you know if this stem will be the only stem or will it send up more? If this plant is just going to end up a single stem then it may not be worth bothering about.

29 Jul, 2011

 

Clems always send up loads of stems when they've been hard pruned.
Yours WILL send up more.

Think of what they do when you prune it back to about 6" in the late winter ...... it sends up numerous new stems - well it'll do that here too.

I would give the plant Miracle Grow feed each week from now until September (the directions are from March to September) to give it some extra 'oomph' too !

30 Jul, 2011

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