Not having an ample amount of roots when they arrived from brushwood nursery this past March?

I know they sleep first year and take off second year

however my three I ordered were like three ..two inch long strands of comparing them to thread. I should have taken pictures but I did email and remark to them and twice since then

I had all three planted same area same light same moisture and one has died that I ordered this past March.

I have other clematis that are doing beautiful that came from joy creek years ago who arrived with a huge handful of root system and normal amount of green also in March and April .

Hi Sheri,
I haven't ordered from Brushwood before. I certainly won't if they send poor plants. Three 2" long roots? That sounds like a newly rooted cutting, not an established plant. Clematis should be at least in their second year before being sold.

It's sad that Joy Creek is no longer selling. It sounds like they sold wonderful Clematis plants.

I bought 2 Clematis 'Mrs. Robert Brydon' from Bluestone Perennials this spring. It's one of the non-vining, shrub-like ones. It produces clouds of feathery pale blue flowers in summer. It makes a pretty bouquet filler. I had a nice one which was accidentally sprayed with herbicide and died.

I was satisfied with the plants. Bluestone grows its perennials in 4" fiber pots that are plantable. So, there's no root disturbance, and they get established very fast.

They have a nice selection of Clematis. They seem a little expensive but I know they'll be healthy. I bought mine when they were having a sale.

Perhaps others on this forum know good specialists to buy from.

Pat

Edit: I should note, 'Mrs. Robert Brydon' grows about 4' tall here and is "bushy" but it does not have woody stems. It dies back to ground level for the winter here. Also, it is not self-supporting. I grow it next to other sturdy plants it can lean on. Such as my Chionanthus which is a small multi-trunked tree with bare stems below.

I bought from brushwood some years ago and was not happy with the size of plants. I've been buying locally.

Your plant might not be dead. I've had new clematis die back then emerge in the spring.

Julia @springcolor

Nice to know Clematis can reappear!

I buy Clematis locally too. The ones at Lowe's and Home Depot are healthy and affordably priced. They just don't have many choices, and they tend to be the same ones year after year. Unfortunately that also is true of our local growers. They often have the same choices as the chains.

I was happy to find 'Mrs. Robert Brydon' at Bluestone and it was on sale BOGO free!👍🏻 After seeing the quality of the plants, I would order again, especially if one I like is on sale.

If anyone knows of a Clematis specialist or other sources with especially interesting varieties, or high quality plants, please share!

Pat

I live in Washington State and we have so many great nurseries here. Not sure of mail order places that just offer clematis. Maybe someone else knows a good alternate source.
I've had clems come when I was sure they were dead. Sometimes it takes a year.

This year my vine (I never knew it's name) grew many many stems, but never flowered. It turned brown during a dry spell and then grew back. I have not cut it back yet. For many years it stayed very small sending up only a few long stems, then exploded. It became very long and grows through a huge rose bush or two. I do not know what happened to it. Has anyone had this experience of no bloom?

Depending on when your clematis blooms, if you prune it at the wrong time - you will be cutting them off. My clematis montana cultivar blooms in spring on old wood, and when I have chopped it up too late in the season for cuttings, I've lost blooms over it. Same thing with other types that bloom in the summer, if I take cuttings in June.