In their native habitats, Clematis don’t have that post holding up your mailbox to support them, or a piece of wooden trellis. In nature, they scramble and climb through other plants, which offers us a hint of just how versatile and willing they are, and the many ways to use them in the garden.
Linda Beutler is author of three books about clematis, president of the International Clematis Society, and curator of the Rogerson Clematis Collection in the Pacific Northwest, just outside Portland, Oregon. Suffice it to say, Linda knows from clematis, and I’m so pleased she made time to speak with us.
She provided tips on matching the right clematis to the right support, and what to look for (not flowers!) when buying nursery plants, and why following the strictest rules on pruning without applying some common sense, too, isn’t the way to go.
If I say garden maintenance, you probably think of work—of getting out the pruners and hedge trimmers and such, and subduing any overenthusiastic plants,...
WHAT MAKES a particular native plant a good choice for the home garden? And where can we look for clues into which natives will...
I call the phenomenon tomato troubles. You know, the yellow-spotted foliage that falls off, or the plant that produces all those misshapen fruits and...