Clematis – Charlton and Blackheath Amateur Horticultural Society

January 2026 talk: Clematis for every season

On Monday we welcomed Everett Leeds who gave us an amusing and highly informative talk about the prolific world of Clematis. He has been involved with Clematis for many years through growing, speaking and writing about them. He has been the Chairman of the British Clematis Society four times and is co-author of The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Clematis . Everett’s enthusiasm for the genus was highlighted when he shared a photo of his former home with the front fence, hedges and trees completely swamped by a 120 foot long and 40 foot high ‘monstrous’ C. Montana. After cutting this completely away, he planted another!

Everett Leeds talking about Clematis CABAHS January 2026 — Everett Leeds discussing the vast range of Clematis and how to grow them from cuttings

January 2026 Meeting and Show Table

Our first meeting of 2026 welcomed Everett Leeds as our speaker. A Clematis expert, Everett gave an entertaining talk and also sold seeds of some of the Clematis he discussed.

As usual, members enjoyed refreshments, took part in the raffle, shared their garden-related resolutions for 2026 and, of course, there was the regular Show Table. Six members took part with a wide variety of entries. We hope that as Spring gets going more members will be keen to show off and share their plants that are looking good each month.

Plant(s) of the Month: December flowers

What a mild 2025 December we are having! So mild, the weather is confusing some plants, such as lavender, Calendula and yellow-flowered Phlomis, out in flower at present.

One of the joys of winter is admiring all the window boxes, the wide variety of beautiful Christmas door-wreaths and observing what’s flowering in front gardens whilst out strolling.

Calendula officinalis flowering in December — A confused pot marigold, beautiful Camellia sasanqua and festive Abutilon

A confused pot marigold, beautiful Camellia sasanqua and festive Abutilon

Plants of the Month: The Whites! (July 2025)

My garden is looking past its best now, as the heat-waves and lack of rain having taken their toll, but these three plants are looking stunning and all worthy of the status of Plant of Month for July 2025.

Mandevilla laxa (Chilean jasmine), July 2025 — *Mandevilla laxa, Hydrangea quercifolia,* and *Clematis* ‘Kaiu’ (V): the whites for July

Hydrangea quercifolia (oakleaf Hydrangea), July 2025 — *Mandevilla laxa, Hydrangea quercifolia,* and *Clematis* ‘Kaiu’ (V): the whites for July

June 2025: Gardeners Question Time

This is now a regular and popular event in which our panel answer questions sent through in advance from members, some with illustrations or examples sent in plastic bags. The panel this year consisted of our very own CABAHS committee member and all-round plant guru Pat K, our President Sir Nicolas Bevan and horticulturalist and teacher Joe Woodcock. Sir Nicolas invited advice and contributions from the audience too, saying that in a room full of gardeners, the panel did not “have the monopoly on wisdom”. We did our best!

Our 'Amateur Gardeners' Question Time' panel, June 2025 — Our esteemed panel: Pat, Nicolas and Joe

Last year we were all overwhelmed by slugs and snails, this year’s scourge is aphids! The first question related to a particularly damaging infestation on Buddleja, which seemed to have caused a virus. Several people, including Joe, have experienced the same this year. He was able to tell us that it is likely to be a specific species, the Melon-cotton aphid, which the RHS are monitoring (you can report cases to the RHS here).

Plant of the Month: Digitalis canariensis (June 2025)

Being the month of June, I am pleased to say that there is plenty of colour in the garden, including Rosa ‘Bobby James’ out in flower, but, the star plant for me is definitely the Canary Island foxglove, Digitalis canariensis.

This is an eye-catching shrub (albeit short-lived) with burnt-orange-apricot foxglove flowers, (flowering since May), supported by strong, upright stems and dark green, serrated-edged foliage.

Digitalis canariensis (Canary Island foxglove)

Pat’s 10 jobs for May 2025

1. Border irises are really doing their thing now and the show can be brief but make sure to keep the soil around their roots free of weeds so their rhizomes can bake a bit in the sun.

2. Time to Chelsea chop your tall perennials to stop them flopping later or to extend flowering. Good candidates are Phlox, Penstemon, Helianthus, Sedum/Hylotelephium – and I include vigorous Clematis too. You can either do the whole plant at once or just some stems to extend flowering, although it may result in smaller flowers.

3. Deadhead displays of pot plants like Violas to keep them flowering and stop them going to seed. Remember to give them a feed to keep the display going.

Hylotelephium telephium 'Touchdown Teak'

Fantasy garden tables

Those of you who are regular viewers of BBC Gardeners’ World will most likely have noted Monty Don’s table of potted plants, which varies throughout the seasons and looks like something most of us can only dream of! In a recent article by Alice Vincent, she describes what she calls Monty Don’s ‘Fantasy table’. (My latest garden fantasy? An elegant table covered in flower pots)

The scale of Don’s table and the amount he has displayed is something many of us may aspire to, myself included! On a recent visit to Anna L’s garden, I was impressed by how she had similarly grouped a range of plants in pots, a mix of bulbs, a small Phlox stolonifera, Violas, a Clematis waiting to be planted and a miniature Hosta. Anna very kindly listed the plants for me and you can see from this that a display does not have to be carefully curated, but a selection of whatever takes your fancy!

Anna's garden table — Anna’s plant table in late spring, featuring:
Narcissus ‘Thalia’ and N. ‘Pipit’; Clematis ‘Rising Star’ and C. ‘Bees’ Jubilee’; Pelargonium australe; Phlox stolonifera ‘Fran’s Purple’; Anemone de Caen blue-flowered; Primula ‘Stella Neon Violet’; Phormium; purple Viola; Hosta ‘Lemon Stiletto’

Pat’s Jobs for February 2025

1. It’s time to cut back those late-flowering clematis…the viticella small-flowered types and the ones flowering after June. All that rain last year made mine grow rampantly so cut back hard to just above a bud, 6 to 12 inches from the ground, and give them a feed and a mulch.

Late flowering viticella clematis — Late flowering viticella Clematis

Clematis viticella - two varieties — Late flowering viticella Clematis

2. You can also cut back some of the slightly early-flowering types like jackmanii varieties and Comtesse de Bouchard, but it’s best to check individual varieties or you’ll lose all your flowers for this year. Other varieties such as early varieties like Montana should be trimmed back after they flower in Spring, unless overgrown – when they require drastic action and you’ll be sacrificing the flowers for a year or two. Anyway, please check.

3. If the ground is frozen or too wet then don’t be tempted to walk on it for fear of damaging the structure. Seems impossible at the moment to get much done!

Pat’s Jobs for January 2025

1. Prune Wisteria this month and next by taking all side shoots back to 2 or 3 buds. Very old plants may need severe pruning to show off the flowers.

Very tangled wisteria waiting to be pruned — Very tangled Wisteria in need of pruning!

2. Start pruning roses in earnest although some are still unbelievably flowering. Remove any foliage with blackspot and don’t compost. Old roses respond well to hard pruning so don’t be afraid, removing all dead and dying wood and cutting stems back to above a bud.

3. I had to remove dead Clematis shoots from a Daphne Jacqueline Postill and in doing so pulled off some of the flowers so take care and do it soon if you can. But leave the main prune until next month.