Shouldn't be an issue to use it at the top of a stockade fence. Personally I think it would look great--like white frosting on a cake when it is in bloom. As to how much it will grow, it will really depend on how well it is maintained by you, how well it was planted, and how vigorous your actual plant is. I personally don't think anyone can tell you how much it will grow this year. Clematis typically take time to get settled in and pick up steam after a couple of years. SAC is a vigorous vine though and I am sure you won't be disappointed.

Thanks very much for that input. Such a visual you have given me of the frosting..lol. I am thinking I will need to offer it some sort of support to keep it on the top of the fence? I wonder if it will damage my fence at all, keeping too much moisture on it? Can anyone tell me what I should be doing for maintainence?

I had my SAC on an unpainted wood arbor and I saw no problems with moisture, however we don't get a lot of rain in the summer. Mine got pretty big in third year, and the fourth year it got too big for the arbor so I had to move it. I think it would look great on your fence, but it might need a little more to grip onto which will help guide it along and keep it on the fence if you get high winds.

Janet..So where did you move your SAC? How was it to move a 4 year plant? Did it take a long time to recover and start blooming again? You said it was too large for the arbor, would you have been able to prune it hard and keep it small enough for the arbor if you wanted to? I was considering putting in some little metal holes that would allow me to run wire across the top of the fence...maybe two rows of them just under the pickets. The area it is in is not a high wind part of my yard, so it might do fine. Thanks very much for your help. :-)

Prairemoon, my SAC is growing on a smallish arbor and I keep mine in check by pruning it over the course of the summer. I usually stop about late July though and it blooms well. Pruning to contain its size has never stopped it from blooming!

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As for the stockade fence, you could get vinyl coated fencing and staple it to the top sort of like a bonnet. The clematis can use that for grabbing onto for additional support. If the fence is made of treated wood or cedar, you shouldn't have any problems with it.

Prairemoon,

It was a lot easier to move than I expected. Of course,there were a lot of roots left behind because there were a lot of roots that were close to the surface that had spread far from the plant. I moved it before it was tall enough to attach to the arbor, so I didn't have to cut it back. I think I only slowed the growth down by a couple of weeks. I mixed compost into the soil and either bone meal or rose tone, and I also used rooting hormone.

Mine blooms in late August or September, and for that reason, I moved the SAC from the arbor because it was in a prominent spot. I wanted to see color in the summer, not a tunnel of green, although it was nice to stand under the arbor feeling enveloped by the lushness.

I moved the SAC to a corner where I am going to try to get it to climb into a tree. I'm not sure how well it will flower because there might be too much shade. If that doesn't work, I'll probably move it so it can climb along the fence. Your wire idea is a good one. I think I will do the same at some point.

Janet, you wasted your rooting hormone as it is used to root softwood or hardwood cuttings. Mixing it into the soil will do nothing to stimulate root growth on a clematis or any other plant. If you want to stimulate root growth, add phosphorus aka triple phosphate into the soil next time you transplant.

I shouldn't have used the word hormone, what I used was root stimulator. I just checked the label and it's mostly phosphorus :-)

nckville....Nice photo! It is so funny to see that huge vine in comparison to the 3 little stems that represent mine this year. lol Is this vine fragrant? I don't remember. Nice topiary too! Love the pot. Yes, my fence is cedar. Thanks :-)

janet...it sounds like a tough plant. Something I always look for in my garden, so I am happy to hear that. Wow, up a tree, sounds like a fun experiment. You will have to let us know how it works out. :-)

Thanks everyone!

Prairermoon, it really shot up with all the rain we've been getting the last few days, so I'll have to start training the vines in front soon. If it works, I will take a photo when it is in bloom. I should be able to figure out how to post by then. lol

Not all SAC's are fragrant for some reason. The older mine got, the more pronounced the fragrance, but I have read that some people never detect a fragrance.

I had the same experience as Janet regarding the fragrance on my SAC. First couple of years, nothing. In subsequent years, the fragrance got stronger. It didn't seem to have anything to do with the number of blooms either. My Aromatica was the same way also. First two years, no scent at all. After that, the scent was very pronounced.

A theory as to why some SAC never have a fragrance is that plants originating from seed from a fragrant SAC show genetic differences that expresses itself with no fragrance. If the plants originate from cuttings from a fragrant SAC, then the plants are genetic matches and therefore will have a fragrance.

DH has been very successful in training ours to stay off the house and not to grab at him while he is using the grill, other than that, the thing is still wild and he regularly machetes it to re-claim his grill.

That is funny grrlsmom! Sounds like something from Little Shop of Horrors!! LOL