RJS,

Like any other perennial or shrub, good watering the first season will be
important, for it will take at least one good growing season for the plants
to establish themselves. After that, occasional watering as needed during
the heat of the summer will still mbe needed

The trick with clematis is that the rootzone needs to be nice and moist at
all times... Some folks mistake this as being the same as keeping the roots
cool. I have found this to be a misunderstanding.

The simplest way to keep the rootzone moist is a heavier than typical
layer(4-6 inches) of a good mulch ( I like dark hardwood, but use what YOU
like) and/or drip irrigation.

Clematis is relativly cheap on widely available, so if you accidentaly kill
some off, should not be a point of financial difficulty.


Anthony B.

wrote in message
...
Clematis has been recommended to me by a knowledgeable person. How
hardy is it? The fence upon which I want a climbing plant/vine to
grow is not easily accesible to irrigation, so I need something that
can last without regular irrigation.


On Tue, 10 Jan 2006 10:47:39 -0500, "Anthony B"
wrote:


wrote in message
. ..
I live in northeast Texas, Zone 8. My property is surrounded by a
wrought iron fence and I would like to have it covered with a climbing
colorful plant or vine.
Options I have considered include
Boston Ivy
Star Jasmine
Viriginia Creeper
Hydrangea

Have absolutely no experience in botany or gardening, and I would
appreciate any suggestions.

Both Boston Ivy and virginia Creeper will not show any nice color until
fall.. thenthey turn a gorgeous shade of red. they both climb by using
little "feet" that develop along the vines and as such require a
realativly
flat surface on which to climb.

Star jasmine would be a nice choice for midsummer bloom and climbs with
tendrils that wil wrap around the fence nicely.

Climbing hydrangea , like the boston Ivy and Virginia creeper, climbs by
adhering to the surface. Climbing hydrangea also prefers a shady
enviroment.


There are three other climbing vines that you may want to consider;
Passionflower vines ( Passiflora), Clematis and climbing roses.

passionflowers are very hardy in your climate zone, come ina range of
colors
from a pale purple tinged white to a rich vermillion red.

Clematis is also very hardy in your zone, are widely available and have a
wide variety of colors (except orange) There is also a variety of Clematis
called "Sweet Autumn Clematis" that has tons of small white blossoms that
favor the Star jasmine in appearance and scent. A very classy vine that
would look very very nice against wrought Iron.
All the clematis climb by curling its leaf stems around what it is
climbing.

Climbing roses, well, there are so many of those to chose from, best I can
say is pick a color you like. Climbing roses do not climb on their own,
so
you would have to secure them to the surfave they are on. All sorts of
ways
to do that.

I hope this is of use to you.

Others may disagree,
Anthony B.