I am transplanting clematis into large (500mm diameter) clay pots. Having a good supply of well rotted leaf mould and well rotted compost i mixed up a 1:1:1 mixture of these two with soil, and some grit. Now I'm wondering if this is a good idea. While its hard to envisage it would damage the clematis I wonder would it hinder its growth ?

On Fri, 14 Jul 2023 00:52:21 -0700 (PDT), Paul Mc Cann
<tpmccann@gmail.com> wrote:

>I am transplanting clematis into large (500mm diameter) clay pots. Having a good supply of well rotted leaf mould and well rotted compost i mixed up a 1:1:1 mixture of these two with soil, and some grit. Now I'm wondering if this is a good idea. While its hard to envisage it would damage the clematis I wonder would it hinder its growth ?

Sounds OK to me, even if the pots are probably a little larger than
absolutely necessary. A sprinkle of a slow-release fertiliser such as
bonemeal would do no harm. But be aware that clematis suffer from a
fungal disease - clematis wilt - that causes severe wilting of the
top-growth, often resulting in the death of the plant.

IIRC the recommended procedure when planting clematis it to plant them
with the crown a bit deeper than you would normally plant things such
as perennials, because the underground parts of the clematis do not
seem to suffer like the above-ground parts, and even if your clematis
is killed right down to the ground, the roots may well shoot again and
the plant will survive and re-grow.
https://tinyurl.com/2lhn8bbf

--
Chris

Gardening in West Cornwall, very mild, sheltered
from the West, but open to the North and East.

On 14/07/2023 08:52, Paul Mc Cann wrote:
> I am transplanting clematis into large (500mm diameter) clay pots. Having a good supply of well rotted leaf mould and well rotted compost i mixed up a 1:1:1 mixture of these two with soil, and some grit. Now I'm wondering if this is a good idea. While its hard to envisage it would damage the clematis I wonder would it hinder its growth ?

What Chris said. Also, clematis are said to like their roots kept cool.
So if the pots are dark (ie not a light colour to reflect sunlight),
they'll need to be in a shady place, although the clematis themselves
should be allowed to grow up in sun or partial shade. Even terracotta
pots will get warm in summer after many hours in the sun.

--

Jeff

On 14/07/2023 08:52, Paul Mc Cann wrote:
> I am transplanting clematis into large (500mm diameter) clay pots. Having a good supply of well rotted leaf mould and well rotted compost i mixed up a 1:1:1 mixture of these two with soil, and some grit. Now I'm wondering if this is a good idea. While its hard to envisage it would damage the clematis I wonder would it hinder its growth ?
>

All I can add is clematic thrives on the (cold) slops ad leaves from
teapots being emptied on them regularly.

--
Global sea level rise to 2100 from curve-fitted existing altimetry data
<http://diverse.4mg.com/slr.htm>

On 14/07/2023 08:52, Paul Mc Cann wrote:
> I am transplanting clematis into large (500mm diameter) clay pots. Having a good supply of well rotted leaf mould and well rotted compost i mixed up a 1:1:1 mixture of these two with soil, and some grit. Now I'm wondering if this is a good idea. While its hard to envisage it would damage the clematis I wonder would it hinder its growth ?

Only thing I would suggest is finding a cheap plastic pot that exactly
fits inside the clay one, that way when you need to re-pot its much
easier and there is less chance of breaking the pot
--
Charlie Pridham
Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk