3

I have a Chinese clematis plant probably, which seem to grow in direction of other plants, and attach itself to the stems of hosts. My question is, is the climber behaviour to its host is just for support or is it parasitic as well, does it grow roots at the junction? How has the plant affected your garden if you have them

Attached is the image of the same

PS: I scanned the plant species using PictureThis android app Clematis plant attaching to a wire

Improve this question

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
4

Chinese Clematis (Clematis orientalis) only wraps itself around other plants. It doesn't suck their juices. However, it can be harmful to the plants it climbs over. It will compete with them for sunlight, much like if you covered them with cloth. Where the clematis stem wraps around the other plant stem, the other stem won't be able to grow any larger, just like if you tied string around that plant stem.

Some plants will not grow as fast as the clematis, and will end up dying or being stunted because they don't get enough sunlight. Some plants will have stems that get strangled and split open, leaving them vulnerable to diseases through the open wound. Other plants will cope with the competition for sunlight and the stem wrapping, and do just fine. It depends on the plant and how healthy it already is.

It looks like you have some tomatoes in the background. I would make sure the clematis stays off of the tomatoes. At best it would reduce your crop yield. At worst it might kill the tomato plant.

It's worth noting that Chinese clematis is classified as a noxious weed in some places. That usually means it will be a problem plant in your garden. Probably best to get rid of this one before it spreads. It's also possible the app mis-identified the species; you may actually have Clematis terniflora. That one's invasive, and (in my personal experience) basically impossible to get rid of once it's established. The fact that it "volunteered" to grow in your garden is a sign that it might just "volunteer" to grow everywhere in your garden if you let it.

Improve this answer
3
  • Thanks for the info, what do you mean that it is impossible to get rid off? I could just cut the plant from main roots, the main plant reside in a pot, and branching from there... Or does the plant spread via pollination very rapidly? (also, I wanted to point that, the plant have been dormant for 5-6 months and have only bloomed by the start of spring here)
    – Itachi
    Commented Feb 16, 2021 at 7:14
  • 1
    @Itachi Many creeper vines are able to grow without the roots - they will just re-root somewhere else. But they also probably have a lot of root bases already - it'll be impossible to find all of them, unless you have a very carefully tended garden indeed. We have Morning Glory where I am, and it's the same way - it grows over the plants, makes pretty purple flowers, but then outcompetes them and kills them, and it's entirely impossible to remove every plant, even if I cut back and uproot every single plant when I spot it.
    – Joe
    Commented Feb 16, 2021 at 17:38
  • 1
    @itachi Just cutting it off won't work, you need to dig out the roots, otherwise it will grow back from the roots. Once it flowers and makes seeds is when it gets really hard to get rid of. The seeds will spread on the breeze and you'll have lots of little clematis seedlings all over the place. And some of them will intertwine their roots with the roots of other plants, which will make it difficult to dig out all of the roots. So it's best to get rid of it now, before it makes babies.
    – csk
    Commented Feb 16, 2021 at 19:40

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.