HOW TO PRUNE CLEMATIS GROUP 2 & 3
Pruning clematis encourages flowering and keeps the stems and display of flowers balanced so that they don’t end up in a tangled mess.
Group 2 clematis are early flowering (May/June) and produce large flowers on the previous year’s growth. Examples of group 2 clematis include The President and Nelly Moser.
✓ Prune group 2 clematis in February by:
– Removing unwanted, damaged, diseased or dead stems.
– Work your way back from the tip of the stem to the first pair of healthy buds and cut just above them, leaving the buds intact on the plant.
– For young plants, hard prune the clematis in its first spring after planting by cutting back to around 30cm above soil level. This will encourage multiple stems and a balanced plant.
– For established group 2 clematis, don’t hard prune. Instead prune overgrown plants gradually over two or three years.
After first flowering, prune back some of the stems to just above the next healthy bud. This will encourage late-summer flowering.
Group 3 clematis are late flowering and produce flowers on the current season’s growth. Examples of group 3 clematis include Warszawaska Nike and Etoile Violette.
✓ Prune group 3 clematis in February or March by:
– Hard pruning the plant by cutting back all stems to around 20cm from the ground. This is particularly important for young plants to encourage multiple stems.
