Clematis care rules in autumn
The state of the flowering creeper in the future spring-summer garden season depends on how the clematis care is properly organized in the fall. Pre-winter preparation covers a number of necessary measures to create comfortable conditions for the perennial plant during the cold season.
Clematis care rules in autumn
Pruning clematis for the winter
Regardless of the time of planting clematis, autumn plant care involves pruning. This is done to prepare him for winter.
The stems should be no more than 0.3 m in height, and up to 3 active buds were present on each remaining cut off shoot. Pruning in the fall makes it possible to establish the subsequent growth of lateral shoots.
When caring for clematis in the fall, in the process of preparing a perennial plant for wintering, choose the right time for pruning. It is best if it is a non-rainy day, between late October and early November.
The best time to prune a flowering perennial is 2-3 weeks before the expected onset of the first fall frost. During this time, clematis have time to recover and gain strength for the upcoming wintering.
They are also pruned for such purposes:
- in the process of pruning, perennials improve the intensity of growth and the profusion of flowering;
- for sanitary cleansing of vines from damaged and dried-up branches and removal of buds remaining after the end of flowering;
- for better adaptation to the coming winter;
- this procedure rejuvenates the plant and ensures the appearance of fresh shoots in the next season.
Cutting technology
Those perennial clematis, in which buds appear on last year's shoots, are cut at a height of up to 1.2 m, leaving the strongest stems on which flowers will appear in the next garden season. They cut off by a third the shoots that have already faded in the current season.
Clematis is almost completely cut off, which is covered with flowers only on fresh shoots. Such varieties retain only 2 active buds on the stems, of which the main flowering shoots will appear in the next garden season.
Top dressing and watering
Autumn care for clematis is not complete without watering and feeding.
If the autumn season is dry, you need to water it 2 times. However, if the season was rainy, you shouldn't water at all.
The last time fertilizing complexes are applied at the beginning of autumn care, before the pre-winter pruning. This time usually falls in the first week of September, in the southern regions it is extended until the beginning of October.
Flowers need fertilization
A strengthening nutritional supplement replenishes the reserves of minerals in the root system and stems lost by a perennial plant. An exception from the number of fertilizing complexes used for pre-winter feeding of clematis are those that contain nitrogen in the composition, because this element leads to an intensive build-up of green mass, which is not necessary before preparing for winter.
When caring for clematis in the fall, it should be fertilized with mineral dressings containing phosphorus and calcium. Additionally, up to 10 kg of humus is poured under each bush.
Protection and shelter for the winter
According to the rules for caring for clematis in the fall, they must be sheltered for the winter season, especially young seedlings, which, after planting, have not yet developed resistance to low temperatures.
They are covered in several stages:
- initially they spud the cut shoots with dried soil, where it is permissible to add humus or peat mass, such additives create additional heat for the root system of the vine;
- then they are covered with natural material that ensures the passage of air masses so that the roots of the vines do not soper and do not begin to rot, spruce branches, sawdust, peat, river sand are suitable as covering organic matter, the layer thickness is at least 15 cm.
Frost-resistant varieties are left for the winter on supports, mulching the trunk circle. Less resistant varieties should be cared for more carefully. They are removed from the supports and laid on the soil, covered with a layer of organic matter on top and with any covering material on top. To scare away rodents, a cloth soaked in creoline or bait with poison is placed in sawdust and peat mass.
Before buying and planting, it is worth clarifying how to care for in the fall in preparation for wintering: what type of frost resistance it belongs to and how to cover it for the winter.
Before sheltering the plant for the winter in the open field, its root area is sprayed in the fall from harmful insects, pathogenic bacteria and fungal spores. As processing agents, solutions with iron vitriol with a concentration of 2% and Bordeaux liquid with a concentration of 1% are suitable. To treat perennial flowering liana before hiding for the winter, it is permissible to use insecticidal preparations.
Conclusion
Planting and caring for clematis in the fall involves pruning, watering, mineral feeding and mandatory shelter for the winter season. By observing these pre-winter care measures. you can save the plant in the cold season, ensuring its further development and flowering.