Funyella Clematis

Upon Arrival:

These plants need to be kept moist. Once your plant arrives open the bag it came in and immerse the whole plant in water for several hours before potting or planting. The roots will re-hydrate and enable new bud growth to develop successfully.

If you cannot plant within a day or two, these plants should be potted up into bigger containers, kept in a bright location and watered regularly. Before planting, remove all packaging material, then soak the entire plant, stems and roots, in a pail of water for several hours. Trim off any broken roots or branches before planting.

Moving Outside:

Gradually adjust your plants to outside conditions over a period of a week or two. First place them outside on a warm, calm day in the shade for a few hours. Work up to more sun, wind, and cooler temperatures and finally leave out overnight. Transplant outdoors after all danger of frost has passed.

Planting:

Clematis can be grown in full sun or light shade, but its base and roots must be completely shaded. You may need to plant something directly in front of its rootball to keep it cool and shaded. A thick layer of mulch will also help to keep the soil moist. Bush Clematis prefers to be grown in average, well-drained, slightly alkaline soil. Adding lime to the soil will help to provide these conditions if your soil is naturally acidic.

Growing:

These varieties bloom first on new growth beginning in midsummer, and then again on new shoots in early fall. The second round will likely produce smaller flowers than the first and flowers that were double the first time may be single the second time.

Though their growth habit makes them difficult to prune, it can be done in late winter or early spring. All shoots can be cut back to the previous year's wood, just above the base of the plant. This pruning is necessary to avoid getting a bare stem with a thick tangle above it. The spring flowers will be eliminated for that year, but the late summer flowers should still be produced. Alternatively, if you don't want to cut the entire plant back all at once, pruning can be done in stages over a period of 3 years. Each year, prune back ⅓ of the stems to 6-9" above a couple of well-developed buds.