We planted this late last summer. It was a hot day and the ground was very hard. Joe was trying to dig a hole to plant this in. His face was contorted and sweat was running down his forehead. Audra was down... crouching beside him. "Why is your face like that?" she said. He just grumbled. He got it planted and we kept it watered. Fall came and the little leaves dropped off and then that horrible winter. Here it is this spring. It certainly didn't follow the rules. It is growing up beyond the support system that we have for it. Today, it has fallen back on itself, due to the heavy winds yesterday. I wish that I had tied the top to something, but it will be OK. It must be a perfect spot for this clematis. We have two tomato plants growing behind it. We use every available space to get a tomato plant in. I planted a sweet autumn clematis just this year. It is in the woods border. I cut the leaves off a sumac tree and left the branches bare. They are a very interesting shape...all twisted and gnarly. I put the clematis at the base of this tree and stuck in some rather tall bare branches for it to start growing up the tree. I thought that this vigorous vine would look cool all twisted around that tree. I looked at it yesterday. It looks pretty much like it did the day I planted it. It seems that this clematis will follow the rules.
Balisha
