NB. I'm we are not great gardeners!
Please be gentle with us! Have googled
but have been unable to find an answer...

We erected some trellis panels last
year and every thing that touched
them wilted and turned black. We
had put some clematis, in pots,
largish ones at the bottom and they
started to grow quite nicely, up the
bamboo in the pots.

When they started to climb the trellis,
the leaves wilted and turned black.
Interestingly we had (very artistically:-)
intertwined some small branches, that
we had from a pruning exercise, into
the trellis. The leaves of the clematis
on the branches were just fine. This is
what alerted us to the problem.

Also adjacent to the new trellis we
have a very large, healthy clematis.
When it started to climb the trellis we
got the same effect. Withering leaves etc...

Is this perhaps something to do with
the treatment on the trellis? We bought
them probably about 3/4 years ago,
already treated. Have I got to just chop 'em
up for firewood? Or is there something
I don't know about clematis and trellis?

Many thanks,
Roy

"RzB" wrote in message
...

NB. I'm we are not great gardeners!

Hmm "I'm we..." ??? -

looks like gardens are not the only
thing I'm not great at!!!!

Roy

"RzB" wrote (snip))

We erected some trellis panels last
year and every thing that touched
them wilted and turned black. We
had put some clematis, in pots,
largish ones at the bottom and they
started to grow quite nicely, up the
bamboo in the pots.

When they started to climb the trellis,
the leaves wilted and turned black.
Interestingly we had (very artistically:-)
intertwined some small branches, that
we had from a pruning exercise, into
the trellis. The leaves of the clematis
on the branches were just fine. This is
what alerted us to the problem.

Also adjacent to the new trellis we
have a very large, healthy clematis.
When it started to climb the trellis we
got the same effect. Withering leaves etc...

Is this perhaps something to do with
the treatment on the trellis? We bought
them probably about 3/4 years ago,
already treated. Have I got to just chop 'em
up for firewood? Or is there something
I don't know about clematis and trellis?


I've not heard of such a reaction on a trellis/fence that old.
Is this trellis between you and a neighbour?
Does your neighbour paint his side with something or spray something around
his side?
Do you get strong/cold wind through the trellis?

--
Regards
Bob
In Runnymede, 17 miles West of London

Bob - Many thanks for your help.

See inline comments...

Thanks,
Roy

"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...

"RzB" wrote (snip))

We erected some trellis panels last

snip

I don't know about clematis and trellis?


I've not heard of such a reaction on a trellis/fence that old.

My wife say I was wrong - she thinks it
is about 6/7 years. We have some other
trellis panels that were purchased at about
the same time and have been errected for
much longer. We have never had much luck
growing anything up them either. Roses &
honeysuckle have never thrived on them and
we never knew why. We are beginning to
think it's the same problem we are seeing
with the clematis, and not down to our
inept gardening skills (My wife say
"speak for yourself" :-)

Is this trellis between you and a neighbour?

No - We have a largish patio and it is being
used to divide off a BBQ eating area. It's two
6ft panels long and sort of sticks out at right
angles from the house. Between the house
and the first trellis post/panel is the large,
healthy clematis.

Does your neighbour paint his side with something or spray something
around his side?

No - and we don't spray any sort of week killers..

Do you get strong/cold wind through the trellis?

Well, this house wall is north-west facing, but is
very sheltered. We are between Winchester and
Southampton... Tropical all year round :-)


--
Regards
Bob
In Runnymede, 17 miles West of London

On 2/1/06 18:47, in article , "RzB"
wrote:
snip
It's two
6ft panels long and sort of sticks out at right
angles from the house. Between the house
and the first trellis post/panel is the large,
healthy clematis.

Does your neighbour paint his side with something or spray something
around his side?

No - and we don't spray any sort of week killers..

Do you get strong/cold wind through the trellis?

Well, this house wall is north-west facing, but is
very sheltered. We are between Winchester and
Southampton... Tropical all year round :-)


I think you said that you're growing the clematis in pots with bamboos,
didn't you? Could this be the problem? Clematis like a cool root run so
they may be getting too hot and they like to be kept pretty damp - though
not water logged - at the roots. Perhaps they have a conflict of
nutritional interests with the bamboos, too?

--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove the weeds to email me)

Sacha wrote:

I think you said that you're growing the clematis in pots with bamboos,
didn't you? Could this be the problem? Clematis like a cool root run so
they may be getting too hot and they like to be kept pretty damp - though
not water logged - at the roots. Perhaps they have a conflict of
nutritional interests with the bamboos, too?

He's got bamboo canes, not bamboo plants with them! At least that's
what I understood.

Sounds so strange - I can't think of anything beside the possibility
that the clematis starts fine because their roots are still in the pot
compost around the root ball when he plant them and as soon as the
roots get outside the compost and hit whatever soil there is they get
sick. Water logged came to mind too.

"La Puce" wrote in message
oups.com...

Sacha wrote:

Perhaps they have a conflict of
nutritional interests with the bamboos, too?

He's got bamboo canes, not bamboo plants with them! At least that's
what I understood.

What else do you expect bamboo plants to produce? Daffodils perhaps?

RzB wrote:

Withering leaves etc...

Can you describe a bit more what your leaves look like?! And when does
this happen? Do you have something else growing around/close to them?

"La Puce" wrote in message
oups.com...

RzB wrote:

Withering leaves etc...

Can you describe a bit more what your leaves look like?! And when does
this happen? Do you have something else growing around/close to them?


Ok - below is a link to two photographs -

NB - photos taken today - not back in the summer.
*****************************************

I wish I had photographed the leaves back in the summer!

If you don't have broadband click on the thumbnail or on
the word small.

www.gillandroy.com/trellis

The first picture shows one of the potted Clematis plants,
trellis and the interwoven twigs/branches.

The second picture show the normally very healthy
Clematis that grows up the house. It has a Fuscia in
front of it. This Clematis grows up a plastic netting
attached to the house. We put a twig/branch from the
wall to the trellis. The Clematis hapily crossed this
bridge but the stems/leaves became very unhappy as
soon as it reached the trellis.

Describe the leaves. Hmm.. bit difficult to say now as
I don't have them in front of me. However the leaves of
the stems climbing the twigs looked like normal healthy
Clematis leaves. The leaves on the stems that come into
contact with the trellis, wilt over a few days and turn
black and die. The plants were purchased in early
summer - probably about May.

What is around them - Begonia's in pots - lot's of 'em :-)

Many thanks for your help.
Roy

RzB wrote:

NB - photos taken today - not back in the summer.

(snip)

Something's wrong with my google beta ... I'll try again. Roy, it seems
that Bob was right. It is not sheltered enough once your clematis gets
to the trellis. It is suffering from winds and cold spells there. On
the wall it is fine. A friend did like you, and made a corner with
trellis for her clematis, north facing, but she has an evergreen
ceanothus with it and this gives it enough protection, it seems. Maybe
you could cover one side of the trellis like a fence and see the
difference next spring. Or grow something else with it to give it more
protection.

"La Puce" wrote in message
ups.com...

RzB wrote:

NB - photos taken today - not back in the summer.

(snip)

Something's wrong with my google beta ... I'll try again. Roy, it seems
that Bob was right. It is not sheltered enough once your clematis gets
to the trellis. It is suffering from winds and cold spells there. On
the wall it is fine. A friend did like you, and made a corner with
trellis for her clematis, north facing, but she has an evergreen
ceanothus with it and this gives it enough protection, it seems. Maybe
you could cover one side of the trellis like a fence and see the
difference next spring. Or grow something else with it to give it more
protection.


Many thanks for your help.

Why were the leaves/stems growing on
the twigs/branches OK? Also this area gets
hardly and wind. It's in a depression
surrounded by high trees, and higher ground
on the westerly side..

Hmm - perhaps we will try something different
this year...

Many thanks,
Roy

RzB wrote:

Why were the leaves/stems growing on
the twigs/branches OK?

Cosier, more protected by the twigs/branches?! Delicate things
clematis. I once grew one, the name escape me, but quite an horrible
one at that, huge green flowers, up a lilac tree. When the lilac was
little, the clematis enjoyed the cosiness, as soon as the branches grew
taller with less protection, the clematis just didn't like the openess
around it. (I was quite glad actually ;o)

Also this area gets
hardly and wind. It's in a depression
surrounded by high trees, and higher ground
on the westerly side..
Hmm - perhaps we will try something different
this year...

Absolutely. I'd favour giving it some protection from one side. You
don't even need to cover the whole trellis. Just that corner from the
wall to perhaps 1m onto the trellis, and see. Let us know!