Armand’s Clematis is the queen of flowering vines, offering a range of rich colors and graceful flowers.
The only thing is a quite delicate flower and you have to be attentive to common problems or illnesses that affect these plants, so below we will detail the causes and treatment of the most important diseases.
Most common diseases of Armand’s Clematis
Wilting
This is the main Clematis disease And one of those feared by most farmers is that Clematis with wilt disease will suddenly collapse overnight.
The foliage and stems dry out, turning black, and the veins turn purple.
The honey fungus
Once affected, the plant begins to die because the fungus cuts off your vascular or circulatory system and you cannot transport water through it. If not treated urgently, the wilt will spread throughout the plant until it is killed.
The good news is that if they are withered, you can recover quickly, since they do not attack your root system. The bad news is that you can often lose all of your vine’s top growth, during the flowering period.
To give your plant the best chance of surviving it wilting, at the first sign of wilting or drying out, you must cut the affected stems at ground level. It sounds serious, but it can save your plant, yes, you must discard the cuttings.
Since the roots are not affected, new shoots should emerge from the base shortly after cutting. If you want to use a preventative fungicide, sulfur is recommended.
Wilt can attack any type of Clematis. However, there is some evidence that the older and more established a plant is, the less likely it is to become infected, but it is not a sufficient guarantee.
Powdery mildew
The white fungal growth called Erysiphe develops on the leaves. The leaves wither and die. So you should apply copper sulfate, potassium bicarbonate, or sulfur as soon as mold is observed.
Holes in the leaves
Various insect pests will feed on and damage Clematis leaves, including earwigs and caterpillars of various moths.
If the young leaves appear distorted or torn and are full of small holes with brown edges, possible culprits may be capsid viruses. Slugs and snails are also a cause, as they enjoy feeding on clematis.
Place a cut plastic bottle at the base of the plant (sliding it over the stems to make a necklace), that way you will protect the stems from slugs and snails.
Green petals
Low temperatures during flower development are often responsible for our plant getting sick. Conversely, if the plant continues to produce distorted green flowers throughout its flowering period, then a more serious problem known as green flower disease.
This contagious disease is caused by an organism known as phytoplasma. Affected plants must be destroyed.
Leaf spots
Sometimes large spots form on the leaves that turn tan in color. The culprits can be Botrytis, Cercospora, Cylindrosporium, Phyllosticta and Septoria. Make sure there is a good air circulation around clematis stems.
Remove infected leaves as they are detected and apply a good fungicide.
Little rodents
On the other hand, a mouse is another annoying pest, since it will eat the roots of the plant and at any moment it will collapse. You can partially prevent the roots from being damaged by wrapping the root ball with plastic mesh or wire
Finally, the best thing you can do is keep your plant in good healthproperly prune your Clematis and be alert for any signs of disease.
