Clematis Propagation Queries

[Insy]

Okay I'm not a huge gardener but like growing the odd eatable in the greenhouse and prepared beds.

Looking to tidy and liven up both front and back garden over the next couple of years which will be preparing new beds, adding well rotted material for added nutrients, as well as reseeding lawns etc etc etc.

I love clematis, sooo many different types/sizes/colours and from what I've been reading if planted correctly together you can have flowers nearly all year round when mixing earlys/mids/lates together.

So my question is this over the next couple months any clematis i see and like with permission of course ill be taking plenty of cuttings for propagation but I'm getting mixed opinions on how to propagate them successfully.

I was thinking of doing the following

Cutting fresh strong vigorous stems from this years growth of the clematis I desire.
Leave a good length of stem below 2 healthy knods where the 2 leaves are, cut 1 of the leafs off leavign 1 health leave but 2 fresh knods.
Dib the bottom of stem where root system will grow into a root growth hormone powder and press into the soil until the 2 fresh knods are touching the soil.
Place polythene/plastic bag over tip with sticks supporting it like a mini polytunnel and tie elastic band round to keep tied for humidity etc.


BUT

I've been told by someone else that clematis don't like propagating from cuttings and have a weak root system.
So he said when you make the clematis cutting you hand graft it onto a plant with a strong root system such as Ivy.
I've never heard of this and it just sounds completely bonkers but I'm a rookie and i would like to hear others opinions on how they do it or the above ideas.

Thanks
Ben

 

[Insy]

No-one has any input on the clematis

 

[pargyle]

Okay I'm not a huge gardener but like growing the odd eatable in the greenhouse and prepared beds.

Looking to tidy and liven up both front and back garden over the next couple of years which will be preparing new beds, adding well rotted material for added nutrients, as well as reseeding lawns etc etc etc.

I love clematis, sooo many different types/sizes/colours and from what I've been reading if planted correctly together you can have flowers nearly all year round when mixing earlys/mids/lates together.

So my question is this over the next couple months any clematis i see and like with permission of course ill be taking plenty of cuttings for propagation but I'm getting mixed opinions on how to propagate them successfully.

I was thinking of doing the following

Cutting fresh strong vigorous stems from this years growth of the clematis I desire.
Leave a good length of stem below 2 healthy knods where the 2 leaves are, cut 1 of the leafs off leavign 1 health leave but 2 fresh knods.
Dib the bottom of stem where root system will grow into a root growth hormone powder and press into the soil until the 2 fresh knods are touching the soil.
Place polythene/plastic bag over tip with sticks supporting it like a mini polytunnel and tie elastic band round to keep tied for humidity etc.


BUT

I've been told by someone else that clematis don't like propagating from cuttings and have a weak root system.
So he said when you make the clematis cutting you hand graft it onto a plant with a strong root system such as Ivy.
I've never heard of this and it just sounds completely bonkers but I'm a rookie and i would like to hear others opinions on how they do it or the above ideas.

Thanks
Ben

Never had any major problems propogating clematis - even without the root hormone powder - your method should work fine. I've often started them out with a cutting in a jar of water until you see some embrionic roots forming then into a pot of seed compost to get going. You can also layer them quite successfully once you have an established plant - just tie one of the stems down into a pot of good soil leaving four or five inches above the soil level and the tied down stem attached to the plant. Best time for this is end summer and leave them over winter - once the layered plants start to show their own growth in spring you can cut the stem to the mother plant and you have one (or several) rooted new plants which will take off like a house on fire.

 

[enrico]

Never grafted, once tried cutting and got fifty per cent take, tried last ten years and failed every time. I have given up
Sorry

 

[Insy]

Yes I read they don't only need good heat like a greenhouse etc but they also need heat applied to the roots for better success.
I read that people lay out trays of sand with heat cable running through it to keep the bottom growth warm.

Would even hand grafting onto root stocks even work, i know fruit trees it does but don't know if that would apply to clematis as well.

 

[Insy]

Pargyle didn't see your post .

Yes the layered method sounds promising, just like strawberries really instead of letting the runners/suckers climb along ground rooting like up into post and push into pot compost and leave to root and detach when rooted from motherplant.

I'll give layered and cutting propagation method a try, i would love to try hand graft method but i haven't the foggiest on how to do this and sounds like a pain.

Thanks for help .

 

[pargyle]

Pargyle didn't see your post .

Yes the layered method sounds promising, just like strawberries really instead of letting the runners/suckers climb along ground rooting like up into post and push into pot compost and leave to root and detach when rooted from motherplant.

I'll give layered and cutting propagation method a try, i would love to try hand graft method but i haven't the foggiest on how to do this and sounds like a pain.

Thanks for help .

Good luck - as I said, I've never had a problem with cuttings although I accept that a few will fail - just take more than you need. Layering nearer 100% success but you need a donor plant to start with !