If you do lose your clematis, then perhaps it would be a better idea to plant a new one in a less exposed spot. However, its occurrence would indicate that, for some reason, the general growing conditions in that part of the garden have become unsuitable. Slime flux will not spread to other plants as diseases do, nor will it contaminate the soil like clematis wilt. However, the plant may well shoot out from below and recover. Protect your plant from mechanical injuries. Prune out and discard all infected stems, cut several inches below the damaged area. Damaged areas of the stem are colonized by bacteria, leading to wilting, dieback, and the appearance of a foul-smelling exudate from the stem. Everything above the oozing wound will certainly die and should be cut down. Clematis slime flux is a bacterial disease that can affect most clematis species. Slime flux is often fatal but it depends where the damage is. Foul-smelling whitish-to-pink, thick, slimy. Control efforts are aimed at eliminating the causes of the disease. ![]() Slime flux generally develops in old trees. Bacteria enter the plant through cracks in the stem – which may well be caused by a combination of adverse weather conditions – and then attack the sap as the plant springs into action early in the year. On woody climbers such as Clematis, you will notice wilting and yellowing leaves or a failure to leaf in spring. The biology is similar to that of clematis slime flux, although it is thought that in trees the bacteria most usually colonise the plant through the roots. Slime flux in linden is characterized by the exudation of a thick yellow slime, which has a sharp medicinal odor and is fed upon by the fungus Fusarium monschatum. “This is not so much a disease as a condition that affects some trees and shrubs in spring. ![]() Here is more about this problem from the Daily Telegraph’s garden advice column by Helen Yemm excerpted below: Wetwood of elm, slime flux, due to bacteria pathogenic in elm trunk wood, especially Asiatic elms, but possibly occur. According to the Royal Horticultural Society, “pruned stems may fail to reshoot and ooze a sticky substance–this is known as slime flux.” To confirm this theory, ask the client if the frothy ooze was pinkish orange in hue, and if it had an unpleasant odor. My best guess (and it is only a guess, since I am basing it solely on your description) is that it could be slime flux.
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