Clematis

oliverbeecroft

Hi
What is the best time of year to plant clematis?  I have trellis in partially shaded area and would like to plant it if you can recommend a particular type that looks nice and flowers well.

There are wisteria shoots popping up in the area but I'm keeping these under control now and keep cutting back to the ground as I cannot find the roots to dig them out.

Thanks,

Oliver

Obelixx

Autumn.   You will need to clear the wisteria as best as you can and improve the fertility of the soil as clematis are hungry, thirsty plants.

There are hundreds of different clematis available now.  I would advice a pruning group 3 as these are easiest to manage and renew themselves each year so they flower at eye height and not just way out of sight.   Use this site to do a search on the colour your prefer with "semi-shade" in the Aspect box and Group 3 in the pruning box.  You can also add size.  http://www.clematis.hull.ac.uk/new-clemlistsearch.cfm 

When you've narrowed down a few choices, have a look at Hawthorne's website and Thorncroft and Taylor's or just check out local garden centres.

oliverbeecroft

Thanks for your support.

Fairygirl

Have you got a photo of the general area @oliverbeecroft ?  
Some clematis are happier in a drier spot, the alpinas and koreanas for example. It also depends what else is growing round about, as you may need access for training in growth etc. An idea of the surroundings helps quite a bit with recommendations, but there are so many to choose from nowadays, as Obelixx says

Obelixx

Let us know what you decide or if you need help choosing between them.