FORCING VINES FOR WINTER USE 193 
given the proper conditions they will flower in 
from six to eight weeks. 
A flower shop that is not well supplied with 
pot plants of clematis around Eastertide is behind 
the times. There are few plants that can surpass 
this beautiful vine when in flower, covered with 
its bold, bright blossoms of different hues. It 
is usually grown supported on a bamboo stake, 
but the time is not far off when you will see it 
trained to all sorts and shapes of trellis for winter 
decoration. Think of the effect of a clematis 
flowering over a balloon trellis! 
The vines are imported from Europe by the 
hundred each fall, and, as the best results are 
obtained from grafted specimens, it will be wiser 
for you to buy a few of these, rather than to 
bother raising any yourself. The majority of 
the imported plants are of the C. cerulea type 
that flowers on the mature wood. Therefore 
don’t really prune them, merely remove faded 
flowers and any undesirable wood at the same 
time. | 
Although the species is hardy, it will not 
stand the extreme severity of our midwinter 
months, so the plants must be stored in a deep 
cold frame or other protected spot until time 
for forcing. Any time after January 1, bring 
