Must deal with Clematis Now

Hello, We have two exhuberant clematis that have climbed all over an enormous tree in our back yard. the tree has become diseased and is been taken down in early August. I am unsure of the best way to handle the clematis. Should I just prune them back heavily to close to the base, put in a pergola and then see what they do?

All advice (well good advice) greatly appreciated. Liz

 

There are four types of Clematis. Recommendations on pruning vary for each one. Now isn't a great time to prune.

If you can salvage as much growth as you can and pull it away from the tree leaving it in a tidy pile, I believe that would be best for the plant
After the loggers have left you can carefully re-establish it on some-thing like a pergola.

Watch the "tree guys" and make sure they understand that you want the Clematis saved.

In my experience, some people have big boots and will tromple plants without thinking or caring.

 

cutting them back hard now will likely interrupt the flowering for next year, but it don't think it will hurt them in the long run .. sometimes circumstances direct our decisions ..