Clematis "Rouge Cardinal" (lat. rouge cardinal) is a well-known clematis variety that is very popular among gardeners. This medium-sized shrub vine can become a decoration for both a personal plot and a city park. Many people are familiar with its bright, large, velvety purple flowers.
Clematis "Rouge Cardinal" (pictured) features large, velvety red-purple flowers.
According to some reports, the variety is a hybrid, obtained by crossing varieties from the Lanuginosa and Vititsella groups. “Rouge Cardinal” (translated from French as “Red Cardinal”) received many awards at various exhibitions, and was also awarded a gold medal at a flower exhibition in Holland. In addition to the spectacular appearance of the flowers, this variety has other advantages: unpretentiousness and stability. Let's look at the main characteristics of the plant.
Description
Rouge Cardinal grows up to 4 meters high, but this is far from immediate. My one-year-old barely reached a meter in length in the first year and froze all over during the winter. The next year, clematis grew from a bud in the ground and grew 50 centimeters. This shoot was already preserved, and now, in mid-July, it is about one and a half meters long. Not the highest growth rates when compared with “Comtesse de Bouchot” or “Azur Ball” - even it feels a little more vigorous.
The length of the internodes is 12...18 cm. The leaves are trifoliate, the length with the petiole is 14...18 cm, the width is 15...18 cm, the length of the petioles is 5...7 cm. The leaves are simple, elongated-ovate, with an elongated apex. The length of the leaflets is 7...9 cm, width - 3.5...4 cm. The length of the petioles of the central leaves is 2...3 cm, the lateral ones - 1...2 cm.
"Rouge Cardinal" blooms on the shoots of the current year, peduncles are formed on the 5 upper nodes. Flowering usually begins in the second decade of July and can continue until the end of September. The flowers are simple, with 6 sepals, 10...15 cm in diameter. The sepals are obovate or diamond-shaped, 5...7.5 cm long, 3.3...3.7 cm wide. The inner side of the sepals is a dark red-purple hue, the middle stripe and the middle at the base are slightly lighter. On the outside, the sepals are smoky red-purple. Stamens are about 18 mm long, filaments are light purple-violet, anthers are pale purple, connectives are gray-purple.
Features of decorative culture
When growing any plant, you must first become familiar with its characteristics and features.
The native lands of clematis are the subtropics and temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. Plants of the Ranunculaceae family can be herbaceous or woody, but most often gardeners grow vines with twining shoots.
Leaf climbers can be characterized by taproot or fibrous root systems. Faceted shoots, distinguished by their thinness, are formed from underground parts or above-ground points of the tree. Simple or compound leaves may be lanceolate or ovate in shape. Lianas are characterized by green foliage, but there are varieties that have equally attractive purple leaves.
Bisexual flowers can grow singly or be collected in inflorescences in the shape of a panicle, shield or semi-umbrella. Simple flowers have 4, 6 and 8 petals; double flowers can have several dozen petals. A large number of stamens and pistils form a hairy center, similar to a spider. Clematis are characterized by a variety of shades: they are white, yellow, pink, purple, blue, etc. The fluffy fruits, collected in fruit clusters, are characterized by a nut-shaped shape.
Lianas bloom for 3-4 months. Flowering of tall clematis, reaching 3-4 m in height, occurs in the upper part of the shoots. This nuance should be taken into account when choosing a place for planting and installing a support for the vine. Usually the shoots are tied so that they bend down. This arrangement of the plant allows you to beautifully decorate arches and fences. In low species, there is an almost complete combination of the vegetative and generative parts. During flowering, almost the entire tree is covered with beautiful flowers. But this feature prevents cuttings, since only the vegetative elements of the plant are used for cuttings.
Photo
Clematis "Rouge Cardinal" - planting and care
Compared to many other varieties of clematis, Rouge Cardinal is a little capricious - it does not tolerate waterlogging of the soil at all, often picks up spots on the lower leaves, slowly grows the root system - but it still lives. I think that if you like it in appearance (and almost everyone likes it; such luxurious dark red flowers are not often seen), then it is definitely worth planting. You just need to approach this matter responsibly.
Choosing a landing site
A southern, eastern or western wall will do. If you are planting against a wall with a foundation, clematis should be placed at least 50cm away from it to prevent the roots from freezing away from the foundation in winter. The place should be well lit most of the day, but slightly shaded on a hot afternoon - “Rouge Cardinal” does not tolerate the sun very well.
Clematis prefers light, highly humus-rich fertile soils with a soil solution reaction ranging from slightly acidic to slightly alkaline. For large-flowered clematis, a slightly acidic one is even more suitable, but it is also good for soil fungi that cause clematis wilt: that’s why we customarily alkalize the soil.
Landing dates
The best time for planting is August and September. In the months remaining before the cold weather, clematis will have time to form a good root system and go into the winter prepared. You can also plant in early spring, before intensive shoot growth begins. From May until mid-August, it is better not to plant, but if you really need to, you can carefully move the plant with a clod of earth.
Clue
It happens that you bought “Rouge Cardinal” late in the fall at a discount (often at the end of October garden centers greatly reduce their prices), and a day later frosts hit. What to do? In such cases, you can cut the shoots to the first or second pair of buds and place the pot on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. There it will remain until spring.
How to prepare a pit
Even for a small seedling, a large hole should be prepared, approximately 50x50x50 cm or a little more. In the first two or three years, the roots of the vine will develop only within the confines of the hole, so it is important that within these limits they have everything they need for growth in abundance.
If you have heavy clay soil, under no circumstances should you lay drainage at the bottom or fill the hole with looser soil: you will get a drainage well into which water will be collected from the entire surrounding area. "Rouge Cardinal" may not be able to withstand such a soaking. The hole must be filled with a mixture of earth extracted from it and compost or humus in a ratio of approximately 1:1. You can also add a couple of tablespoons of superphosphate and potassium sulfate there.
Do I need to wash the roots?
For purchased plants of unknown origin, it is better to expose and inspect the roots. It happens that someone eats them right in the pot. It happens that the roots there are rotten and the rotten areas need to be cut off. After this, the root and the buried part of the stem should be sprinkled with a mixture of river sand and ash to create a barrier, at least weak, for soil fungi.
How to plant?
Plant with the roots spread out so they point out to the sides and down. If the plant is young, with green stems, it should be planted in the same way as it was received, without deepening. If the stems are woody, you can deepen them by 1-2 nodes when planting in order to get more shoots from the ground. Then sprinkle it first with a mixture of sand and ash, and then with the prepared soil mixture. After this, the plant must be thoroughly watered to remove voids around the roots and add more soil - after planting, the soil will probably settle.
Clematis care
Watering
It is necessary to water clematis only during prolonged drought, rarely, but immediately in large quantities. It is better to water with rain or pre-settled water at the root. After watering, the soil can be loosened to a depth of 1...2 cm and mulched.
Loosening the soil
It is better to loosen to a shallow depth after each heavy rain or watering. This improves air flow. You cannot loosen deeply, because in this case you risk damaging the surface roots of the clematis.
Mulching
Clematis "Rouge Cardinal", and clematis in general, do not tolerate overheating of the roots very well. Mulching the tree trunk avoids overheating, reduces the number of weeds, and simplifies maintenance.
It is better to sprinkle the area immediately around the stem with a mixture of sand and ash to protect it from wilt. After this, you can mulch with hay, straw, mowed grass, and neutralized peat. Over time, they will become an additional source of organic matter for the soil.
Propagate by dividing the bush, layering and cuttings
| 1. Dividing the bush Process:
If the procedure is carried out carefully, the plants take root well and bloom quickly. | |
| 2. Root layering Process:
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| 3. Cuttings Process:
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Top dressing
Feeding clematis is described in detail in this article, but here I will give only a general diagram:
- In spring - compost or humus in any reasonable quantities, as well as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium - 10, 5, 5 grams of active ingredient per plant.
- During the budding phase - 5 grams of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium + microelements.
- After the first wave of flowering - again 5, 5, 5.
- In August, 5 grams of phosphorus and 5 grams of potassium per plant. You can also do foliar feeding with a 0.5% solution of potassium monophosphate and microelements (about 0.25 g per 10 liters of water boric acid, magnesium sulfate, ammonium molybdate, etc.). It is better to spray in cloudy weather in the evening.
Trimming
“Rouge Cardinal” - clematis 3 pruning groups. In autumn it should be cut at a height of about 20...30 cm above a pair of strong buds and this cutting should be covered for the winter. This is not difficult: you can lay a couple of coniferous legs, a piece of lutrasil and a film on top so that the entire structure does not flood with water. You need to leave a small vent on the side for ventilation. In such conditions, clematis will overwinter well. Some do not cover it at all, but only trim it and hill it high. In principle, quite a good option.
Use in landscape design
The decorative properties of "Jacman" clematis are used extremely widely. The bushes bloom for quite a long time and very abundantly (often more than 500 flowers on each), creating real “living walls”. These plants are planted near porches, verandas and gazebos; with their help, they hide not very attractive sections of fences, as well as blank walls of buildings. Many gardeners prefer to build an individual support for each clematis (often a complex, interesting shape), or plant several different varieties along a separate long trellis. Lianas are able not only to climb up supports, but also to place their stems obliquely or horizontally. This property allows clematis to be used as ground cover plants when decorating low fences, alpine slides or walls used for zoning garden plots.
Clematis "Jacman" are widely used in landscape design not only for vertical gardening, but also as ground cover plants used to decorate alpine slides or low fences
Amateur gardeners who are passionate about cultivating clematis often create beautiful compositions by planting varieties with flowers of different colors nearby. At the same time, they take into account the possibility of changing the “color palette” not only vertically, but also horizontally. The fact is that varieties of clematis differ from each other not only in the shape and color of the flowers, but also in their location on the stems. By planting nearby low-growing varieties and clematis that bloom on the upper half of the shoots, you can achieve surprisingly spectacular results. In addition, flowering vines harmonize perfectly with rose bushes, especially climbing and park roses. Both crops require similar agricultural techniques and the same pruning for the winter, which greatly simplifies the care of the plantings.
Clematis can be used in landscaping balconies, loggias and patios. Both low-growing and tall varieties are suitable for this, but it is better to give preference to varieties that have a not too powerful root system that does not dry out in the heat and does not freeze in frosts when placed in a planting container (pot, container or tub)
Recently, such plants are increasingly attracting the attention of specialists involved in interior design. They quite actively use clematis to decorate office and even residential premises.
Cut stems of flowering clematis vines look harmonious in bouquets with other flowers and serve as interior decoration for a home or office.
When cut, the flowering stems of vines are included in bouquets. Sometimes large flowers, separated from shoots and immersed in flat containers with water, are used to decorate rooms, which looks especially interesting in the cold season. Enthusiasts (still quite few in number) obtain material intended for such decoration by winter forcing low-growing varieties of clematis in protected ground.
It is not without reason that clematis are considered the “kings” of ornamental vines. They can decorate any area, help with garden zoning, and hide visual defects in buildings. The varieties included in the Jacqueman group are easy to plant and care for, unpretentious and surprisingly diverse. This makes them one of the most popular plants, earning excellent reviews from many Russian summer residents.
Reviews
- Moscow: “Rouge Cardinal” has been growing for twenty years now and has become a huge bush with excellent flowering. Every year it is pruned short and winters under the snow.
- Moscow region: clematis grows for many years, for the winter it is hilled up and covered with peat. The flowers are not red, but very dark red with a slightly purple tint, and are not large.
- Leningrad region: bought as a re-sort, turned out to be very successful. It is unpretentious, blooms profusely, the color is dark burgundy, sometimes it seems a little purple.
- Kyiv: we planted two Rouge Cardinal flowers in the front garden three years ago, both took off well and grow very vigorously, starting at 2 years old. Very beautiful flowering, while there are few flowers, but they are beautiful.
- Novosibirsk, surroundings: Rouge Cardinal is one of the few clematis that overwinter without dancing, they are simply pruned, covered with peat and overwintered under the snow.
- Minsk region, Belarus: sometimes spots appear on the lower leaves. Otherwise, the variety is very good, blooms beautifully every year, and is responsive to fertilizing.
- Grodno region, Belarus: in comparison with other clematis, Rouge Cardinal grows more slowly and blooms more modestly at first, but the color and texture of its flowers are excellent. It is worth choosing places that are well lit in spring and autumn; in partial shade this clematis develops poorly.
If you also grew this clematis, please leave your feedback in the comments to the description of the variety. It will be useful to other readers of the site.
