How much of the roots will you cut? It makes a difference.

Jeri

If you're only making a gallon size hole and the plant is vital and vigorous with no real growth issues, AND it's cooler and wetter so the plant isn't exploding into growth, it probably won't even notice. If it's weakened or if it's pushing new growth and flowers like crazy and you're going to cut off half its root system, it WILL notice. This should be the better time of year to do this as it's (hopefully) cooler and damper when these things aren't really noticed. Kim

Thanks for jumping right to my question, Jeri & Kim! A hole the size of a gallon pot is about it, and it will be in mid-February which is still chilly here. I will keep it watered well. The plant is 10' tall but doesn't keep many leaves on its body, so I'm going to hide the nakedness.

Also, will either plant mind the root competition?

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

I've known a number who have grown clematis and roses together and loved it. It isn't my personal taste and I'd be more concerned about ease of cleaning up the clematis when it needs cut back and air circulation for the rose, but that isn't meant to say you're doing anything wrong! Others' experiences show it works, so go for it. Sounds as if you have it all timed just right. Good luck! Kim

hi Sherry, when you plant the clem, leave a gap of around 10inches from ther base of the rose. The stems of the clematis will easily bend back towards the rose and, if it is a viticella or texensis, the pruning of the clem is really easy. Growing something like a clematis to hide bare rose legs is a classic garden trick in the UK and to my mind, looks good from very early on - clems are always fast to put out new shoots, starting for us in January. When the bloom season of the clematis is over, it is easy to pull out the old clematis foiage - it goes brownly crisp in the UK but may stay green for longer in Florida - you feel quite a heel ripping out armfuls of still lush growth but it grows again, like lightening every year. I have sandy soil like you and my roses tend to have quite far-travelling and fibrous roots. as well as a long taproot if grown on Laxa (and most are). Close digging will cause some damage but is highly unlikely to be fatal - in fact, your rose may even respond with extra vigour if you keep it nice and watered.

Campanula, I was planning to place it about 12" out from the rose, so that's good. I think I'll need some sort of netting to enable it to climb up the canes. I have a texensis (Princess Diana, I think) that just lays on the ground because it can't climb Maman Cochet, Cl's thick canes. How do you give them something to grip on?

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Couldn't you provide it something like we always did for sweet peas? Strings tied to what you want it to grow in to, then attached to either a piece of wood or a stake driven into the ground by the crown of the clematis should show it where to go. I often use green plant tape tied to the trellis or patio cover, then to the tops of the jasmine, wisteria or other climber I want to "find" the support, to encourage it to go where I want it. I don't plant clematis here as they aren't really suited to the inland heat and our adobe as well as they are to milder areas, and their foliage and wood aren't as durable as other more evergreen vines. They look "tired" much earlier and faster than many. They WILL grow here, but are best when they can be hidden among other plants so their flowers are a surprise when available and unnoticeable when not blooming. I well remember a chain link fence in Birmingham, Alabama my grandmother slip covered with C. jackmanii eons ago. It's probably where my fascination for deep violet toned flowers came from. Kim

I've actually accidentally chopped off one whole side of a roses roots once. It didn't even miss a beat. And a good friend of mine took a shovel to his mothers rose and sliced it in half because it got too large for where it was. He moved half of it across the yard to another spot. Both halves are still growing and blooming like mad.

I've had a clem, Ernest Markham, growing up, through and around my Paradie HT for about 15 years. They are quite happy together. Clems and roses have very similar needs so the clem does very well on what I do for my roses. I don't have any problem pruning my rose because the clem needs pruning right about the same time so they both get a hair cut! You should probably look at the clems that need annual prunning, group 3 or C I believe, so you can prune them both at the same time. Some group 2/Bs will do OK but stay away from the group 1/As because they only bloom on old wood so if you prune them every spring you won't get any blooms.

I do have fishing line tied from the bottom of the post mounted trellis to ground pins at the base of the clem to give it a path up and back toward the trellis that I want it on. That's worked very well. My only suggestion is to plant the clem behind the rose and not in front of it which is what we did. In hind sight I think they both would have looked better reversed. If I ever have to move them I will plant them back the other way round but I'm not looking forward to that day, lol!

Kim, I've never grown sweet peas, unfortunately. So, you run the strings from the ground near the clem up along the canes, and then they'll travel up the strings like walking on a moonbeam? Pretty cool. I was thinking horizontal not vertical. Thanks, Kim.

Seil, that's an amazing story about slicing the rose in half. All of my clems are in Group 3, and planting the clem in front will be easier since there's not much room behind it. I don't blame you for not wanting to move them.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Sherry, you NEED to plant sweet peas! If you get the Multiflora types, you can start them in winter and have flowers for Christmas. They smell amazing! Lilacs and sweet peas are my favorite scents. It actually works a bit better to secure the strings just in front of the climbing plants so they grow up through them. That way, they'll "find" the strings and do what they're naturally inclined to do. You're welcome! Kim

mmm, must concur about the sweet peas. There is a variety called Matucana - deep violet and blue, also one called cupani (pink and white) which are far more fragrant than the peas with bigger blooms. They also behave themselves as long as you keep picking them. Now is a perfect time to sow them, 5 to a 5inch pot, outside against a wall maybe, for a little shelter. You could also try the famous species pea, L.sativus (reputed to have been the type found in Tutankhamun's tomb) As for fastening the clem, I do exactly as Kim does, using a sloping cane to guide the climber alongside it's support. Clems will latch their leaf stalks to anything thinner than 1cm diameter.

1 centimeter = 0.393700787 inches

Thank goodness for Google!

Campanula, are you getting the barely audible whining coming from sunny Florida? --- i don't know how to grow sweet peas. will they grow in the heat? you mean start them in the pot but then plant them in the ground, right? will they grow on a rose or are they too vigorous? what do you grow them on? i mean, just a little trellis against a wall?
(The idiot gardener returns!)

I was googling for seeds, and someone said Matucana grows to 1.2192 meters. No, she didn't. She said 4 feet. Do you agree with that size estimate? Is it totally wrong to think about growing one up into a good-sized Tea rose bush?

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll try to get some seeds of this variety. The photos are VERY pretty.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Found an excellent article, so now I'm not an idiot gardener anymore. :))

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: Sweet Pea Success

Hey Sherry, what do you know about growing Serviceberries? hehehe Kim

Here is a link that might be useful: Serviceberries

well oddly enough, i am just embarking on growing edible aronia berries having grown amelanckias often (snowy mespilus, we call it) the aronia berries will be new to me though and I am not expecting fruit for a few years yet.
Sherry, we hover between imperial and metric measurements here in the UK. Even in my own household, sweetheart is still a feet and inches man while I have embraced metric -although i still cycle for miles rather than kilometres.
Yep, peas will take the heat - be generous with manure and compost in the planting.

I'm getting ready to find out as I'm going to plant three red cascades on the back side of three small arbors with three existing Don Juans. I have not been happy with the way Don Juan looks (not heavily leaved and sparse bloom). I'm hoping the two will blend well together. The cascades are in gallon pots, so I'm hoping the Don won't notice when I dig into his roots to put them in.

I have to plant sweet peas in the fall here to have much success. Maybe you're enough cooler, Sherry, that you could start them now.

Kim, what do you think? hehehe Give me a chance to read about it.

Campanula, I'm looking for seeds online now. I can find plenty in the UK. I'm shopping now on Diane's Flower Seeds. She has the Matukana. Others have lots of other varieties but not Matukana.

Floridarosez, I was going to do that. RC will get big enough to hide DJ's nakedness. It's quite vigorous.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Sherry, try looking for old fashioned sweet peas - not the Spencer hybrids. There are some really interesting specvies types such as tingitanus which is a native of morocco and algeria - lovely terracotta peas. Then there are the L.verna, bellidensis (pale orange and evn yelloows (chlo...something?)

Sherry, Renee's seeds carries both the sativus and cupani that Campanula talked about. They have called the sativus 'Electric Blue' - you have to click on the "How to Plant & Grow" box, which will then show a photo of the actual seed packet with the species type listed on it. They also have a mix of intensely fragrant, heat tolerant antique varieties called "Perfume Delight" - the seed packet doesn't list the specific varieties, but perhaps you could find out by inquiring.

Here is a link that might be useful: Renee's Seeds lathyrus sativus azureus