Pruning clematis

(Question)

I have a jackman clematis in a partially shaded garden. I bought it last spring. At first it grew slowly. Then it started to grow along the fence and produced a lot of purple flowers. A couple of weeks ago I pruned this clematis. I may have made a big mistake. The clematis looked very dry, brown and dead so I cut it all the way back. There are stalks remaining but they very short. Will my dear clematis grow again? Thanks in advance for your response.
Sincerely,
Rose

(Answer)

Jackmanii clematis are herbaceous perennial plants that are later bloomers with large purple flowers that put on a remarkable display in any garden.  The pruning recommendations for these plants are to cut the stems back to the first buds just above soil level in early spring.  New shoots will come from these buds and within a very short period of time, you should see a remarkable amount of growth.

So, to answer your question directly, you did nothing wrong at all, if fact your pruning was a good thing and will benefit the overall health of the plant.

Hope this helps.