Quote:
Originally Posted by Fireweed  Hi, can anyone help?
We have a clematis ("Mrs Norman Thompson") in a half-barrel, which was there when we moved in. It has never flowered! Last year I tried pruning it per instructions in a book about clematises, making sure I was following the correct pruning guide for the type of clematis it is - but still no flowers. It is in partial shade but does get full sun in mid afternoon.
Also we have a Hebe rakensii (or is it rakensis). We've had this for five years, and it has grown slowly but never flowered. Last September I moved it to a position where it can get more sun - it seems to have taken the move quite well. I've given it a general fertiliser this Spring. It's new position is NOT a hot, sunny site, but it is only light shade with full sun from late morning to early afternoon. Our soil is clayey. Any chance of it flowering, do you think? |
Failure to flower is not necessarily evidence of a soil condition problem - in fact conversely a plant may fail to flower because it is being too well fed, putting all its effort into growth rather than reproduction.
I'm not sure what you could try with the hebe - with the clemetis I would suggest starting a very thorough watering regime from now until the end of May - a thorough soaking at least twice a week. I would then (unless we are in the middle of a real drought) give it a two week break. This 'false' drought' may force flowering. You will need to watch for signs of wilting though and resume watering if the compost becomes dry more than 5cms from the surface.
CM