Hello everyone, I am new to this forum and this is my first post. For years I have tried taking clematis cuttings after reading everything I can and watching videos on youtube but sadly to date I have only had two successes. ( more good luck than good management) However, This year I decided to take only new growth cuttings and using rooting powder placed about 20 in a seed tray at the start of May. Even though no new shoots have appeared, I notice a great deal of new straw coloured roots growing out of base of tray. I have now successfully got about 10 rooted cuttings -I think!!!. Why are roots seeming to be growing happily without any new shoots? Is this normal and if so, when can expect shoots to appear. Should I keep my newly potted roots in the greenhouse or move them outdoors.

I am feeling so close to success that I am afraid of losing them again. Many thanks for any advice you may offer.

I've taken many clematis cuttings in the spring, usually always just a single node buried deep with leaves sticking out, and in the first year the nice roots will form but often no more (or not much) top growth. It's the next year that I'll see lots of growth from those roots. In the fall dormant season is the best time to pull them apart and plant them out in the landscape nice and deep (top bud beneath the soil is okay!), but they live over the winter still in my propagation jugs outside just fine as well.

I have noticed with clematis, though, that if you have a piece of stem between where the roots are forming and the lowest bud/node of the plant... that piece of stem is often pretty fragile. If it breaks, suddenly the roots have no bud to grow from, and I don't think they can make another from the internode that remains. So I recommend making sure that lowest node is planted deeply enough to get roots of its own (so such a problem doesn't occur),

Congratulations on your success!