Sacha writes
On 2009-05-07 07:52:11 +0100, bob said:

- only planted last autumn so not much growth on them yet, and most
of the new flower buds tips have been munched on.
My Readers digest book says earwigs/slugs, but I picked off a couple
of tiny snails this morning. Can I win this way, or should I use a
chemical?

Mice seem fond of Clematis, too. If you do choose the chemical route,
I'd recommend Sluggit and then pick off the dead snails or slugs next
morning and dispose of them.

Alternative is to grow clematis in large pots away from slugs (I grow in
greenhouse) until they have about 4ft of woody stem and then plant them
out. And don't cut them back lower than this. Although they still get
slug/snail damage, it's a lot less at that height, and they soon get to
a level of vigour where they are growing faster than the slugs can eat.

I had a clematis which simply 'disappeared', and didn't reappear the
following year. Something like 3 years later I was rooting around in the
flower bed and came across the roots of the clematis, still alive. So I
dug it up and planted it in the greenhouse, and it grew away happily.
They have a most remarkable will to live!

Also - don't be too ready to assume wilting stems are clematis wilt -
inspect closely, and you may find the stem has been almost rasped though
by a snail.
--
Kay