Earlier this summer, we planted a Jackmanii. Its stems were damaged in the process of securing to the lattice fence so we had to cut it back. Thankfully, it seems to have recovered nicely and it's growing up the fence. More than a dozen flowers have bloomed and there are a good number of additional buds waiting to pop.
We are in a severe drought so everything is struggling. Would we be wise to pinch the flower buds and give the plant an opportunity to use its energy to get established?
Zone 7a
" snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com" expounded:
Why not make sure it gets enough water?
Good parts of zone 7 (at least here in Washington, DC) have been having the kind of hot dry weather which tests even that strategy. The plants lose so much water through the leaves that they can sometimes droop even if the soil is moist (although if this is their only problem they'll tend to perk up at night). Soaker hoses (not watering cans) a must if you hope for "enough" water. High water bills. Possibility of leaching nutrients out of the soil from overwatering. Time consuming to do all that watering, move hoses, etc. And so on.
Pretty common this time of year, but worse than usual this year.
Personally, I'm more of the "plant something which can cope with the usual summer drought" philosophy. But for weather this bad, and new transplants, I'll make at least a partial exception.
So going back to the Clematis, I don't Clematis too well, but pinching the flower bud of new plants (a) can't hurt the plant, in terms of getting established, (b) defers the gratification of flowers (obviously), (c) is something I've never really consistently had the patience for. So I guess I'm not much help on this one :-).
If you've got the patience, go for it. Try to get the buds as young as possible. Yes, it will help conserve the plant's resources.
Don't forget to weed, also... most weeds transpire horribly. Mulch, even dust mulch, also helps. And remember clematis likes shaded roots.
Kay
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