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I have a climbing Clematis Montana (Gothenburg) which I planted in May (I'm in East England). As this is a group 1 variety, it is supposed to flower early — I haven't seen any flowering this year. It climbs very vigorously, and has already reached ~3m height. I read that Group 1 Clematis is supposed to be pruned after flowering, and that the harder (unpruned) branches are more likely to flower the next year. The leaves have now started to wilt (see picture at the bottom). The aim is to get a more even/denser covering of the trellis next year.

Should I prune it and/or prepare for the winter in any other way?

Clematis Montana

alkamid
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1 Answers1

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In short, no. If you only planted it in May this year, it isn't surprising you've not yet seen any flowers. I would not recommend pruning it - Clematis montana varieties are only pruned immediately after flowering if they have become very overgrown or spread too far after a few years. They do not need pruning in order to encourage flowering and are generally left alone, other than removing stray growth that is invading somewhere you don't want it; if you prune it now, you will be removing any growth that might have produced flowers next spring. It will need time to settle in and establish a good root system as well as produce plenty of topgrowth - you will likely get flowers next spring, anywhere between mid April and early May, depending on weather conditions, and assuming it is planted somewhere that gets sufficient sunlight.

You may want to extend the height of the trellis you have before the clematis really gets going next year - these plants easily reach 8-9 metres in height and spread.

Bamboo
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