As long as you "CONTINUE" to water that area..they will re-emerge...biggest mistake most people make is when their clematis wilts..they ASSUME it's dead and stop watering..that truly is the kiss of death..for the roots drying out will kill it...it should come back for you..I've seen 'em disappear for two year and poof pop back up...fertilize like normal and water...Jeanne

I did that one year with my Crystal Fountain. I had accidentally chopped it off to a 6 inch stem when weeding, and I just kept watering like it was still there. It reappeared next spring more vigorous than ever! I just wish Henryi would now be doing the same! I'll keep going with it as if it was still there :)

I sure hope Jeanne is right. I have at least 4 clemmies with no signs of life. One, Piluu came up last year and then seems like it died from wilt. Never saw another sign of life from it. Another one a 5 gal. unnamed clemmie died to the ground - it's been about 2 years and no sign of life.

I shovel pruned 'Willy' two years ago and planted 'Ruby' in it's place and right now they are both blooming. I missed some roots of 'Willy' and it grew and came up this year and bloomed.

I have had some Clemmies wilt away and die but they were all really tiny babies from Chalk Hill's going out of business sale and two from Park Seed. All others from all other sources have all come up again after being seemingly dead.

All my other clematis were leafing out by last week but my "Wisley" was looking dead...no sign of life until I looked above at the arbor where it is growing with a climbing rose and there was a very vigorous green Wisley vine growing from all of the dead looking stuff below...I didn't prune last year because I'm still uncertain which ones need it...maybe that's what happened...anyway I'm hoping it fills in at the bottom.

Well, I have hope still, because these were both vigorous, big plants, one from Garden Crossings, and one from Brushwood Nursery. I know to bury them with a couple "nubs" underground, so I'm hoping...
BTW,buyorsell, I shovel pruned Rebecca last spring for "dying" on me, now watch her come up too lol!

I found a tiny little green bud right at ground level on one Henryi! That gives me hope that both survived. I know at least one is still alive! I did plant deeper so might just take longer to poke through at ground level. :)

Kent..great..and remember it's still early for clems in your zone 5B...Jeanne

Kent, all my clems are showing leaf buds and new growth from the base, except for Gillian Blades and Julia Correvon (both new last year). So, you're not the only one anxiously peering at the ground every morning looking for signs of life LOL. Let's hope we are both pleasantly surprised in a week or so...

Judith

I whacked Hagley Hybrid and Richard Pennell down to thick brown stems that looked dead because I was annoyed and thought perhaps I'd really killed them when nothing was happening but I saw new growth the other day when I looked up close.

This evening I found several that were planted last fall pushing through the leaf mulch that covered them over the winter. Will look for other clematis when I pull back and remove more of the leaf mulch tomorrow (if we don't get rain).

I'm hoping that a couple that did not grow last year might appear this spring.

Buyorsell, they'll probably come back with a vengence! I did that to my Crystal Fountain one year and she came back the next spring bigger than ever! lol

I've done it to many but these two sulked longer than any others have and were thicker and woodier at the base.

Bummer, I thought I saw that green bud, but it was actually brown and dead looking right at soil level. I still hope but no signs of either Henryi yet, which I don't really understand. They were both bought at great clematis growers and came looking healthy and vibrant last year. I bought the one at Garden Crossings, and one at Brushwood. Oh well... All my other clems are looking great and leafing out now. Grrrr...

I still have a few that have yet to show any life, and a few others that are just barely out of the ground. Too early to call it yet.

a few of mine are barely coming up though some are already blooming and some covered with buds.

Now I know at least one Henryi survived. I found him just at soil level starting up green shoots! The other one I still can't find, :( I'll just keep hoping and watering!

John Paul II was my last one to show, so now I am 17 for 17, with ten more on the way from Silver Star. Got pretty lucky and have multiple basal shoots from every single one. Hurray for chopping to the ground!