Is this Clematis wilt?
KW PNW Z8
2 years ago
Yesterday morning this ”Pilu” Little Duckling Clematis looked great - yesterday aternoon it was in total wilt! Shocking! picture 1 taken week or so ago, picture 2 taken just now. This plant has been in this spot since spring 2020 & the top 2 feet of it is this year’s growth. I moved it from another spot where it lived for @ 4 -5 years & did well. I read @ wilt but doesn’t look as that fungal disease described. Should i cut it at base & see if grows again or just give up & dig up?
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Comments (6)
KW PNW Z8
2 years agoRelated Discussions
The Boulevard Series and Clematis Wilt
Comments (2)Hi Mike, I've only raised Chantilly out of the Boulevard Series. I have not had it suffer from any wilt. If you want to be on the safe side, you could go with the Viticella hybrids, but most of them get pretty big. I have a fair number of Evison's clematis and love them. Good Luck! Here are a few photos of my Chantilly: ">...See MoreClematis wilting (sort of)
Comments (14)Glad you brought up this thread. This is an amazing year for clematis in my garden, too. All those (except for 1) that I was thinking about getting rid of are blooming like crazy. Fireworks was one of the first to bloom and is still blooming. Carnaby has been in the ground for 6 or 7 years, never producing much, even looking pathetic the previous 2 years, but this year it looks great; it too is still blooming. I think it's because of the spring we had. The cold weather hung on, then we had a near-perfect late spring, and the hot temps were delayed....See MoreClematis wilt?
Comments (8)Can you take several steps back and take another photo so we see its environs? Can you also add information on where you are to your profile so we have some idea of growing conditions? Anything you can add would be helpful as well, such as how you planted it, what the soil is like, etc. Just from those photos, it looks really close to the wall, so last year's vine might have had issues from high pH if there is new concrete, or insufficient moisture if it is under the eaves of the house, etc. So more info is needed. My greatest clematis killer is a small mouse-like rodent called a vole. They eat just above or below the soil line, and seem to love clematis to the point that I now plant in circles of 1/4" hardware cloth (wire mesh). To add zone and location info to your profile, Go to Your Houzz in upper right of every page, click Edit Profile, and on the left side click advanced settings. Well down the advanced settings page is a blank labeled Climate Zone for Garden Forums along with a link to find your zone. Then return to the top of the page and click Done Editing. For the new plant with wilting in such a short amount of time, I am inclined to think that you have some type of vine damage , whether it is cut worms, wind damage, or some damage caused by transport and planting. IME wilt doesn't effect type 3 clematis like Jackmanii....See MoreSo much clematis wilt this season
Comments (8)A number of issues get mistaken for clematis wilt that are not :-) Several weather related stressors can produce symptoms that are similar to wilt, including both too much or too little water. As well as damage to the basal stems of the vine from critters or mechanical injury. Wilt starts at the top of the vine and rapidly works its way down to the base - other similar looking issues will start at the base and work their way upwards. And then there is also a temporary 'wilt' situation that is not a fungal issue at all but lack of a sufficiently well developed root system to support a lot of vigorous top growth. That is probably encountered more often than true, fungal-based cases of clematis wilt. I worked for a period of time for a very large wholesale grower of clematis and have grown a fair number of these vines over the years, including many species types. It is perfectly true that the large flowered hybrids tend to be more prone to wilt (either the fungal wilt or the 'grow too fast for the root system" wilt) than do the species vines or those very close to the true species. But neither wilt is fatal or permanent. A good number of the clematis I grew in my old garden (close to 50 or so) were supposed "wilted" plants returned to the nursery. I took them home, cut them back, planted them properly (a bit of a trick with clematis) and they never looked back! I can honestly say I have never had a case of wilt originate in my garden so I am a firm believer that proper planting technique and focusing on either the early blooming species or the small flowered late bloomers can avoid this unpleasant ordeal entirely. As to planting techniques to avoid instances of clematis wilt or wilt-looking problems, plant deeply (4-6 inches deeper than in the nursery container) in a well-amended, freely draining planting hole and to cut back the vines hard regardless of type or pruning group for at least their first two season in the ground. Both the deep planting and the hard pruning encourages a strong and well developed root system and the production of multiple stems from the root crown, which serves to prevent against damage to a single stem from whatever mishaps and to better support the vigorous top growth with respect to both water and nutrient transport. This is pretty standard advice given out to those who frequent the Clematis forum. Try it - you may find it makes a world of difference in how well your clems survive without disease or weather issues....See MoreKW PNW Z8
2 years agoKW PNW Z8
2 years ago
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