Why does this Clematis look so sad? Is it pining for the fjords? No, it's a victim of my failure to train it to the arch trellis. While Clematis are vining, climbing plants (except for the shrubby kind), they generally won't train themselves onto a trellis without becoming a mess. I was hoping this plant would magically train itself to the arch like its neighbors across the path have done,
while forgetting that I did give them a little help. Clematis are photo tropic, that is, they will grow toward the light and away from your carefully selected support if it is not between the Clematis and the sun. (The arch is between the Clematis and the sun on the east side, but not on the west side.) No, I forgot that important principle and ended up with a mess.
I know Clematis can be used as a ground cover, but not like this.
So what to do at this point? It's still early enough in the season that there is plenty of soft new growth. I untangled the mess as best I could, cutting off any tendrils I couldn't untangle. It does no harm, and even if there is breakage of a major stem, with Type III Clematis such as this one, it will simply sprout from the severed point and bloom slightly later.
Then I wrapped the tendrils around the crossbars and each other. Sometimes I use bits of old pantyhose (the only good use for it is as a garden tie) to tie the vines to the support. The plant immediately begins to respond to the change in attitude. A day later, both the Clematis and I are happy.
*DAISNAID stands for "Do as I say, not as I do."