I've been trying to hold these vines at bay for weeks now in Philadelphia - cutting green vines back by the yard from properties bordering the big park. They're certainly up here.

Here is a link that might be useful: C. terniflora

Mine is up and has grown about a foot now after cutting back to 6 inches. I just planted it last year too.

Here it is this spring as of late April--

{{gwi:587198}}

Well the stems on mine look like they're broken :( . Towards the bottom, they're split open. I'll wait and see if anything shoots up from the ground. Kentstar, good luck with yours!

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Thanks Brad! So far so good. Mine even bloomed last fall too and I was surprised by that. I thought it probably wouldn't bloom the first year, but it did!

I just planted mine last summer. All or most of my other established clems are peeking through.

Not a peep from SAC.

Mine is up and running.

Kentstar, congrats on having blooms last fall! That is an awesome suprise!

I was at the nursery where my neighbor bought my SAC yesterday and they had two plants of it, one of which needed trimmed but it was growing! I'm going to wait for a little while to see if mine comes back before I decide to get another one.

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Moonwolf, I would think your's should have shown up somewhat by now. Hmmm... That being said, clemmies are tough and love to surprise us. So, give it some more time, keep the area watered well. Did you plant it with the crown below the ground? I planted mine 3 to 4 inches below. Some people plant it even a little deeper than that like 6 inches down. Plant it at a 45 degree angle to get more stems. (Of course, I usually manage to forget to do this lol) Mine doesn't get 8 hours of sun either. I think it gets sun from about 1 pm to dusk maybe in the summer.

Ok I will give it more time. I think the crown was a little below ground. I didn't plant it at a 45 degree angle either lol. The spot where it's at, everything that has been planted in the ground before it has not done well there. We did have a climbing rosebush at first (the first spring after we moved to this new spot; long story) and it did well. Dad sprayed for weeds after we took it out and everything we planted there in the ground afterwards has faltered. I will wait and see what it shall do since I see weeds growing up beside it lol. I would really love for this vine to grow :) .

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Can you move it anywhere else?

Here's a pic of my SAC in the 2 weeks time since the one above. I wonder what it will do in 2 months time?! lol Or 2 years time?!

{{gwi:587199}}

Am not seeing a thing from my Sweet Autumn either.Mine is actually 3 or 4 years old and was just huge late last summer so I don't know what is going on. My other clematis are up and growing so will just have to wait and hope for it to reappear.

Kentstar, your sweet autumn looks great! Just think of the blooms it'll have this fall! I *might* have another area for it. The back steps have latticework on them. I could plant it behind the latticework (it'll be under the top of the steps) so no one will mow over it.

PT, I hope your sweet autumn comes back too!

Brad AKA Moonwolf

That's weird PT. I hope it comes back too. I know that some say it can be late to wake in spring. 3 to 4 years is long enough for it to be well established. Hmmm...

I Saw this thread yesterday & reminded me to get the trellis started before Sac starts weaving through the temp fencing I gave her since last season. Poor Sac was planted in 2006 actually to climb a simple arbor & protect my Nikko Hydrangea from our Midwest sun ~ did her job beautifully!

A tornado took down the arbor covered w/ SAC before I could prune her down for Winter! I decided to relocate Nikko to a more ideal site & dug up SAC ~ potted & gave her a her a 4ft cage for a year ~ 'til I could find a place for her. A not so perfect 7+ft trellis is nearly completed -~ hopefully tomorrow.

She did start weaving thru the temp fencing & had to unwind her & guided her loosened twines to her new trellis - she got a bit limp w/ all the handling but I'm sure she'll do OK after a while. Here's her story in pix.

Here is a link that might be useful: My poor SAC

Mission accompished! Got the simple ( using past season's plasti-coated tubing poles & plasti-coated wire fencing) trellis/arbor done! Perhaps not squared nor will pass *Architecture 101* but SAC wont mind surely! She woke up on day 2 not so beat looking ~ i used nylon hose to guide her to her new climbing wires!!!

I love your temporary arbor! I may have to try something like that for one of my other clems.
I hope your SAC comes back with a vengence! :)

Good growing everyone! Not one vine has grown from mine yet! I wonder if it is dead.

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Hi Again ~ in case you are curious to see my creation ~ top of poles need trimming!

Sorry that this album includes Ramona in trouble ~ I just posted about her perhaps can have my ?? answered as well in this forum.

TIA!

Here is a link that might be useful: SAC's simple trellis ++

I'm not growing this one, but my neighbor's SAC has grown so fast she's worried about controlling it. I think it likes cold weather because that's what we've had -- snow until the end of April, then nothing but chilly temps and rain.

Well, guess mine is not coming back. I check just about every day and nothing. It is really strange as last summer it was a thug and poof it has disappeared.I was in a Walmart store yesterday and notice they had a big shipment of Donahue clematis. They were mostly Sac so I am just going to wait until they mark them down before I purchase another one.
Lois

Hi p~t ~ don't be surprised if one day your SAC will just show up again if the site is untouched. I planted 2 the year I did this one that I've moved around a few Xs.
The lost guy reappeared the following year & I was able to pot & caged him ~ he even managed to bloom just like the one pictured in my link above.

However in a smaller pot & left out ~ unprotected he is gone. I'm leaving the pot alone just in case he shows up once more!

Good luck & have fun w/ the new one you get!

Oh BTW my young SAC I just built this Trellis/arbor last week-end, has definitely bounced back & is crawling up as if making up for time!!!

I'm in the same boat as you PT, mine did nothing at all. I wish our Wal-Mart had Sweet Autumn for sale. If I do get one (hopefully soon), I'll plant it in a different area (under the back steps where it will grow up the lattice).

Brad AKA Moonwolf

If your interested, I bought mine at Joy Creek nursery. Best clemmy I've seen yet! Awesome company too!

Brad ~ SAC covering up a a lattice would be awesome ~ she should be able to do it this season yet!

I just thought it's about time all our SAs have by now budded to put on her show by 1st or 2nd week in Sept. How are everyones' coming along?

Heat-wave. I'm sure, stunted growth a bit, as mine did ~ however these couple of weeks' return to normal end-of-Summer temps got her going again & I just noticed all the stems producing bunches of buds ~ I'm thrilled.

Would like to hear from you! TIA

Loads of buds on mine too. I can't wait to see the flowers on her this season. Grew about 30 ft this year!

Picture of my 6 year old SAC,, Full of buds but none have opened yet. Picture taken August 22/2011.. Sandy
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Hi Sandy ~ so nice & thick ~ when do you prune her down for next season Fall or Spring.

Mine was originally planted Spring 2007 (correction: not '06) but relocated 3 time & spent 2 years in a large pot until this Spring. So the poor gal is flimsier than earlier years but keeps on putting her show ~ quite a resilient Clem she is. Will give her 2 more weeks & see if she makes up for lost time!!! Will post pic then!

Can't wait for your pix as well!!!

Hello ditas
I prun my SAC in early spring.. Here in TN we haven't gotten much rain later so every day I fill a 2 gal bucket that I drilled a small hole in the bottom and I fill the bucket and the water slow leaks out the bottom and the bucket is at the base of the clematis, I have many other clematis and most of them when I planted them I put a 3" piece of PVC pipe in the hole and thats how I water most of my others, from the bottom up.. I just fill the PVC pipe with water daily when its this dry and I have found if you spend a light extra time when planting them it just makes life a little easier later on... Just make sure the pvc pipe sticks up about 3 or 4"above the ground level. Also makes fertilizing them with liquid fertlizer easy. Relocating them will set them back. I currently have 22 clems. Sandy

Wow ~ Sandy what a great idea! I have 3 to set in the ground in Spring & will follow your footsteps! How deep do you sink the PVCs.

Have you tried installing PVCs after the fact ~ will it hurt roots if I did, do you think?

PVCs sticking up will get covered by the under-plants ~ many thanks for the sensible tip!

I cut the pvc pipe to fit the hole I dig, if the hole is 1 foot or 2 foot deep then that's how long I cut the pipe.. As for installing after the fact I guess you could give it a try but I would think there would be some root damage, but nothing that would not repair itself over time..if you do I would wait until later in the fall after cooler weather sets in. Sandy

I hope you all have a wonderful year will your SA again. Brad, I am wondering if yours ever showed itself. I planted my first in fall of 2009 & it didn't grow any in 2010 so I transplanted it & haven't seen it since :( I have a feeling mine will not be one of those waiting to surprise me but I remain hopeful. I hope, however, yours will show...they are beautiful!

If I do make another purchase, I am considering planting it in partial shade instead of full sun since that didn't work last time. Any suggestions?

Brad, did your's come back?

Mine grew all the way up my hedge last year! Probably about 20 ft in length and that was it's first full year in the ground!

Hope your's does just as well!

I joined the gardenweb today and posted a question before I found this discussion, so you may see that as well. My thriving SAC has not shown her beautiful self this year. I can't imagine why. Two others are doing well. Reading thru this forum - I guess I'll just wait!