You could prune it now or even into May. Its called the "Holiday Plant" because you prune it hard around Easter and then take off about 1/4 to 1/3 of the new growth on Memorial Day and again on the 4th of July for a bushier plant. It may sound drastic, but you could cut it down to about a foot tall on your first cut. Dormant buds will break on leafless stems, but I try to leave a few leaves somewhere on the plant. One monster I have I cut back to no leaves one year and it leafed out just fine. You don't say where you are, but I acclimate mine to full sun and bury the pot in the garden for summer and start the photoperiod in September (Labor Day). 10 hours of light, 14 hours of total darkness. tj Here is a link that might be useful: How I do it

Almost in February so I am closer to the pruning time. I just want to make sure I am going to prune right, so I thought I would check in another time, offer some pictures and drop a possible bomb. Yes.. the neighbors adjacent to me would like to build a fence across their back yard, however the fence where my grape vines are hanging on the chicken wire would need to move out 3ft in the direction of the neighbors, so that they don't enclose my fruit trees in their yard (since I had planted my apple, cherry and peach trees on the outside of my fence). So now I really am worried I'm really going to screw up my grape production as the chicken wire has to come down and the grape 'trunks' and vine system needs to be swayed inward toward my back yard and trellised on wire. So here's what I have done so far. I freed the trunk vines out of the chicken wire (grew through it in places and would have had interrupted circulation in a couple years I suspect) and then tried to make sense out the tangled mess of vines with 1st, 2nd and 3rd year's growth (assuming I count the year I planted them as year 0.. like 7" tall sticks in 2007.. is that wrong?). The vines are more of less straightened and here's what I want to do.. The wood that is the lightest color at the tips of each arm is the summer 2010 wood, right? .. so I leave 30 buds on that for each arm I want to trellis, right? I bought 1/8" wire rope to thread through 2 sets of needle hooks I screwed in some 4"x8' posts I had already sunk in the ground. My idea is that I want to bend the vines from that back corner of the yard over to the right (as shown in these photos below). The arms of the vines will be attached to the two sets of wires that are 30" apart. Will this work? I realize I might be a bit unconventional, but my yard is truly cramped and if this works to get me good production, I'll be thrilled. My neighbor's house diagonally behind mine offers me no privacy, so I have thought of getting with my neighbor that has the welder in his garage, picking up some scrap metal and making a trellis to attach to the tops of the wooden posts, and then train some vines up there both for added production and screening of said neighbors. Nothing like them having a BBQ and looking uncomfortably in my back yard as the sweaty gardener has blackened hands and sweat pouring down his face. lol Here are the 'trunks' I have 2 plants, but all the compost and mulch I dumped over the last 4 years had caused the one plant on the left to split\root a few times looks like: From 01252011 This is just to the right of the trunks. Most of the vines are directed here, though I have a few really long ones on the right side out of the picture frame too. From 01252011 Here is where I am attaching the wire and directing those monstrous vines, so the wires will go from the trunks to the right and then make a right angle along the rear fence between those posts. From 01252011 Here is a shot of the whole setup: From 01252011 So please offer some recommendations of getting this thing in control without sacrificing much production. This will be the going into the 4th year of growth in the spring. Our lost frost date here is around May 5th I believe, so how long should I wait before I start pruning?

If you do plant it in a pot, I would only do so for one year before putting it in the ground with plenty of bonemeal and composted manure, about 2 cups of each mixed well and placed in the bottom of the whole. Then I would buy another clematis next year to plant with it. Clematis plants become very addicting, In another season or two when it is covered with flowers you will understand and to see a combo of another clematis planted with it or a rosebush, especially a climber is breathtaking. Put them on a trellis or fence or something to climb up. If you do order another one, get it through a much better place like Silver Star Vinery or Chalk Hill. I have dealt with that company too and choose to stay away from their tiny little plants,especially clematis. Look up daves garden on the internet, go to garden watchdog and there you will find ratings and writeups on how these mail order companies due and who to stay away from.

Cutting them back only delays flowering. It doesn't stop it or harm the plants. In fact, cutting them back makes them fuller and invigorates them. Better to cut them back than not. If you've got brown growth with new shoots cut all the brown growth back to the lowest buds even though they are dormant. It will sprount out more vines. All Clematis, no matter what variety they are should be hard pruned the first few years.