[Kleftiwallah]

I'm hoping this queary will slide in under the wire, as your previous advice and answers have been very informative, I'll give it a bash (fingers crossed).

I have a very pretty clematis growing up a pergola, the first 2 - 3 feet is nothing but dry(ish) stems, after that there are flowers and foliage in profusion.  After the flowering season, can I carfully untangle  all the stems and lay the dry stems round the bottom of the pergola so next year the whle plant will be green from soil level?


Cheers,  Tony.

[mumofstig]

I would think if you laid the stems down they would be a magnet for slugs and snails, so I think pruning next spring may be the best option.
Clematis are divided into 3 groups for pruning, depending on when they flower. If it's flowering now it is probably group 2 and there's some useful advice for  rejuvenation pruning here

https://www.thorncroftclematis.co.uk/advice/pruning-34.html

[Kleftiwallah]

Many thanks for that useful lead.  I've stored it away for next spring.

Cheers,  Tony.

[sunshineband]

Some of ours are like this, a mss of bare stems for the first two feet, so I planted something in front to disguise this, and this also shades the roots, which clematis seem to like.

One has lavender in front, which works well, and another a large lupin, a third has foxgloves, and the largest of all has tall planter whith varied contents depending on what we have. Currently it has various coloured pansies and a small lime green choysia