@Bella rosa -- Clematis can be extremely frustrating that way. They are often mislabeled, AND the appearance of the blooms is very sensitive to environmental conditions and health of the plant. There are several varieties, for instance, that will bloom with doubled blooms at some times and singled blooms at other times -- and flower color on younger or stressed-out plants is often paler than on older or healthier plants, something that can be especially obvious on the striped varieties. Give yours a couple of years before you make any conclusions about its "true" appearance!

Flower-Frenzy This is what I would do: When they are done blooming I would cut ALL of them down to the ground. I would then sprinkle alfalfa pellets from the feed store (big bag, cheap) around them and some Rose Tone too and keep them well watered during hot spells and well watered once the rain stops. This will force new green stems up from the crowns. However, if this freaks you out. Cut half the stems to the ground and the other half to the lowest pair of nodes/buds, just in case the previous owner didn't bury the crowns properly when planting..... There is plenty of time in the PNW to cut them hard after blooming before frost. I'm cutting my own back late this year as I have tendonitis and just didn't get them done on time.... I have over 50. I hard prune almost all of them. Some every year and some every other year. Clematis don't read books, they don't know what pruning group they are supposed to be in. Our climate is very good for them with rebloom too. My only complaint is mildew on type IIIs.

Some clematis brown on the lower stems without affecting the upper leaves and stems and flowering. Nothing to be done except to hide it with plantings of annuals or perennials in front of the plant. Keeping soil moist might help delay or stop the browning from occurring. If the stems are black and leaves above are wilting it may be clematis wilt. Trim off the old dead stems as the top growth is going to die anyway. Leave unaffected stems alone. New stems should grow from the crown. There are different theories about clematis wilt, some think it it caused by a fungus and others think that rampant growth overwhelms the plant and the plant will outgrow the wilt tendency as it matures. Large flowered varieties seem to be the most affected. Here is a link that might be useful: Clematis wilt This post was edited by mnwsgal on Tue, May 20, 14 at 19:25

I usually mulch the area around my clematis well (though not right against the stems) to help keep moisture even. A couple of times a week you might stick your finger down as far as possible into the soil in the area you dug out. Sometimes the moisture level in a relatively new hole may be different than what it appears or what the surrounding area is like, either drier or wetter, so checking before watering is helpful. A few questions: Where are you generally? - plants behave differently in different parts of the country What is your soil like - sandy, clay or loamy? and what is on the other side of the fence? - i.e. might your neighbor or a road maintenance crew have been spraying something like weed killer? For what it's worth, IME Jackmanii is a fairly robust clematis and should pull through even though it may not look too ornamental right now. My mom had one that a landscaper planted, in clay soil with no attention whatsoever other than a pruning if I happened to be in town at a good time for that, and it survived and bloomed every year.