It is a group 2 clematis that is an early flowering type. You could cut them off I suppose. It may affect your bloomtime next spring and be a little later blooming. How old is the clem? If it's first year or second, it certainly wouldn't hurt it to cut down now. Clems love harsh treatment when their young!lol

That clematis is at least four years old in the same location. I wouldn't mind if it is later, I would just hate to lose a whole year's worth of blooms. It is in the 70s here this week. The ground is still completely frost free. Should I wait until the ground is frozen to cut it back?

Thanks :-)

I would let the plant tell you when to cut back. When it's fully dormant you could cut back. Others with more experience with clems might have different opinions.

Since it is a group 2 clem it blooms on old and new wood. You would lose any blooms that would have grown on the old wood then. Just forgot to mention that :)

Thanks Kentstar, I am going to move it in the spring and I would expect it to have to establish itself in a new location any way I guess, so I will wait until it is dormant and trim it at that point. I seem to remember cutting it back to the ground every spring. Hmmmm....maybe I should be leaving it alone until after it flowers and maybe I would get a larger size on it. Great that if it blooms on new wood too, I will at least have a chance to see a few blooms next year.

In colder zones, it is best to leave clematis pruning for the spring. Pruning encourages growth and if your temperatures are still quite warm, pruning now can stimulate new growth that can be damaged by winter cold. Type II clematis - which is what Duchess of Edinburgh is - require only minor pruning. Just remove the top portion of the plant - the first 12-18 inches or down to the second or third set of fat buds from the top of the vine. Since the majority of type II flowering occurs from second year growth, too hard a pruning can remove the major bloom flush. Once it has completed its first flowering, prune lightly again to tidy and encourage a later and usually lighter second bloom.

In warmer climates that have a long growing season, many clematis growers do hard prune type II's. The initial flowering is delayed but the vine will still flower nicely.

The very general rule of thumb for pruning most clematis is in spring at the same time one would prune roses. The exceptions are the very early flowering type I's. These should be pruned - if any pruning is required or desired - immediately after flowering.

Thank you gardengal :-) I am not interested in cutting back the stems per se, just getting the dead flowers and dead leaves off the vine so it looks better all winter. Maybe I can do that without harming the stems, or they may still drop on their own when it gets colder, but so far, they are clinging and looking awful. I will try to get a photo and post it. I should have done the 'prune lightly after the first bloom'. I am going to move it to a new location on a different trellis in the spring and I am assuming there's little chance I can get it untangled from it's current trellis to move it, so I thought I will probably have to prune it next spring at that time. But, I will start to minimize the pruning from that point on. It would be nice to see a larger size vine. The flowers are gorgeous and I look forward to it blooming every year.

I usually cut off the heavy tops before winter once the night time temps have been in the low 40's and near freezing for a couple of weeks. Then I do my final pruning in spring.